Location
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Event Website
https://hicss.hawaii.edu/
Start Date
7-1-2025 12:00 AM
End Date
10-1-2025 12:00 AM
Description
This paper differentiates objective from subjective views of information, emphasizing the role of human intentionality and creativity in the informing process. Combining Schopenhauer’s aesthetics with the subjective theory of information, we reconceive data representation as an art form. Using a case study of Tableau’s best practices, we show how intentional creativity can transform ‘objective data’ into meaningful and aesthetic visualizations, fostering deep emotions and profound insights. This approach can reconcile environmental complexity and ambiguity, thereby enriching the human experience. However, it carries the risk of seduction through beautiful, but misleading, information, necessitating a shift in focus from useful to responsible data representation.
Recommended Citation
Mckinney, Earl and Ciriello, Raffaele, "The Art and Beauty of Informing: Subjective Information, Vorstellung, and Aesthetics in Information Visualization" (2025). Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences 2025 (HICSS-58). 2.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/os/human_flourishing/2
The Art and Beauty of Informing: Subjective Information, Vorstellung, and Aesthetics in Information Visualization
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
This paper differentiates objective from subjective views of information, emphasizing the role of human intentionality and creativity in the informing process. Combining Schopenhauer’s aesthetics with the subjective theory of information, we reconceive data representation as an art form. Using a case study of Tableau’s best practices, we show how intentional creativity can transform ‘objective data’ into meaningful and aesthetic visualizations, fostering deep emotions and profound insights. This approach can reconcile environmental complexity and ambiguity, thereby enriching the human experience. However, it carries the risk of seduction through beautiful, but misleading, information, necessitating a shift in focus from useful to responsible data representation.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/os/human_flourishing/2