THE BRIEF: Create an animated data graphic
RATIONALE:
My animation is a visual representation of key statistics of the Salkantay Trek in Peru. It is a challenging 6 day trek undertaken in the summer, raising money for Alzheimer’s Research UK. The animation aims to visually represent the trek through using objects such as travel stamps, footsteps and tickets to display the data, creating an atmosphere that feels like you could be on the trek yourself. It aims to show multiple sets of data from the trek so the audience can see the bigger picture and understand
I chose to depict 5 types of data to visualise the whole trek, so the animation reflects the journey itself. The animation starts in the style of an old map, suggesting the history and age of the trek, and its title references travel stamps, further setting the scene of the animation. The animation then moves on to focus on the mountain, which is a visual representation of the elevation of the trek. The rest of the statistics are themed around the mountain, such as the footsteps going over the mountain, campfire smoke and national park tickets.
The colours use are quite natural, reflecting the atmosphere of the trek. I tried a range of ways to depict my data, mostly focusing on items used on the trek, such as shoes, backpacks, campfire smoke and buildings. I then worked out the best ways of displaying the data with the imagery I had come up with. I also chose to combine steps and distance together to compare them against each other and see the correlation between them.
The animation would be viewed by people who completed the trek so they could see their achievements visually and relive their experiences, or people who donated towards our cause so they can see what we did in order to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK.
