This thesis will explore the vital importance of empathy on the part of graphic designers when creating information graphics. Today's over-mediated public expects a rich user experience that is emotionally engaging, and multi-sensory by nature. To meet the public's need, graphic designers must accept the cognitive responsibility to be empathetic to the viewers' relationship to the information, and not just the surface issues of form, media, and content.;I will explore the evolution of the essential roles that designer empathy and user expectation play in information dissemination, by focusing on effective information graphics. First, I will start with the history of information graphics, and the parallel developments of technology and graphic design. Next, I will locate examples of new media that allow more sophisticated expressions and add more designer responsibilities. By pointing to watershed examples of information graphics that add empathy to create an engaging user experience, I will further develop the connection between the two. Finally, to demonstrate the importance of this empathetic information design hypothesis, I will create an exhibition using various information designs addressing America's and my own problematic relationship with information related to sugar, one that has led to the highest incidence of obesity and diabetes in U.S. history.
展开▼
