Visual Data Storytelling: A Case Study of Turning Big Data into Chinese Painting

Visual data storytelling is a relatively new terminology that has emerged over the last decade. The use of information technology in data visualizing is becoming more common and accessible to users. The artist apply a variety of multimedia, symbols and metaphors to independently create a visual form that expresses data and communicates with real life. The visual data are the media that provide powerful and essential means of communication. If “visual data storytelling” is viewed as a process of communication, it follows naturally that how the artist’s performances are conceived, developed, delivered and received, and how the audience is attracted, accurately understanding the data and affected by the data visualization are worth exploring. Therefore, this study is intended to propose a framework focusing on how the conception of the artist affects the creation process and how the creation process is understood by the audience. The artist’s creation activities were analyzed through the framework of four steps using a case study of turning “big data” into “Chinese painting.” The results showed that the approach could be applied to understanding data visualization and provides artists with an idea of how to concentrate their efforts at the creation stage, the easier to communicate with their audience. In addition, the research framework seems to provide a better way to explore the understanding of how data transforms into art forms, which is clearly worthy of further study.