I’m still digging out from the big storm this weekend in Washington, DC. I received 24″ at my house, ranged from 14″ to over 30″ in the metro area with heaviest around Columbia, Maryland. I worked during the storm and Laris and I tallied the NWS weather spotter reports of snowfall and used the GIS to krig the a map of average depth from about 50 points (which had to be filtered to remove expired values). Then used Illustrator’s Live Trace functionality to vectorize. Preview above (for the local home page promo which didn’t have room for legend, so directly labeled the contours), full graphic below with explainer of how the storm happened (with Laura and Larry).
[Editor’s note: One big news design conference already in 2009 (Malofiej) and another coming up (SND in Buenos Aires). The “subway” map above (view PDF) shows the presenters at Malofiej thru the years and the topological relationships between “lines” and presentors (nodes). The video and text below preview the SND conference. Thanks Larry!]
Republished from Mauricio GutierrezDeputy Design Director/Features, Detroit Free Press
If you’re thinking that SND Buenos Aires could be a good conference to attend in 2009, put in your vacation request ASAP! Buenos Aires is piping hot. Has anyone counted how many stories on the city have run in The New York Times lately? A lot.
And for a good reason. I went there a few weeks ago and can give you a sneak peek at what you may see while you’re there enjoying the Workshop.
First, clear your calendar for at least a week: you’ll need the time. After flying ten or more hours, you’ll want time to relax and stroll around the city’s many neighborhoods.
At first, the city’s charms underwhelmed me. It’s a big city with big city problems: pollution, traffic, dog poop. But look past all that and you’ll find a great place, one inspiring and show-casing design.
Just walking around the city, I saw some of the best use of color, particularly around the neighborhood of La Boca — (for soccer fans) home to the Boca Juniors stadium where Maradona played — with its multicolored homes and shops. And don’t forget the Casa Rosada, Argentina’s White House but in a nice pink hue. How great is that? An explosion of colors.
The amount of visual stimulation is surprising. From fantastic architecture to well designed stores, from colorful facades to ornate signs, there’s so much to take in. Among the amazing things I saw were hand-painted signs. Not your average signs, these were full of color, great typographical sense, and fanciful designs. They’re a unique artistic expression called “fileteado porteno,†an art form that started as a way to identify carts at the market. It was then transferred to other vehicles. Now you see it everywhere, from menus to McDonald’s. I love its naive simplicity and bought a sign painted by an artisan in San Telmo, an up-and-coming neighborhood with an art fair and flea market on Sundays. Though you can find many street vendors and artists selling signs in the fileteado style, each shows various skill levels. By far, the best sign painter was Marcelo Arias. His trace and color sense were fantastic. I also bought a book on the subject, “Fileteado Porteno,†by Alfredo Genovese to learn more about its history and current use. When you’re in Buenos Aires pick up a copy of the book, it’s an indispensable reference book for any designer.
The Washington Post won 5 bronze awards in the Malofiej Infographics competition (SND Spain), including one for my interactive graphic District Taxi Fare Estimator published in January 2008.
Full list of Washington Post winners (all print except mine):
Karen Yourish and Laura Stanton for U.S. History of Black Politicians
Brenna Maloney and Todd Lindeman for Recession 101
Brenna Maloney and Todd Lindeman for explanation of the high price of oil/gas
April Umminger and Laura Stanton for the fireworks preview page
[Editor’s note: Miss last week’s events in Mumbai? Check out this mashup I did for the Post. It went up Wednesday night and was updated continuously through the conclusion of the attacks Saturday.]
At least 174 people were killed and hundreds injured during a series of coordinated attacks in Mumbai, India that started November 26, 2008. The synchronized attacks struck at the heart of the city’s commercial district. The three-day siege left several Americans dead, including a father and daughter from Virginia and a young Israeli American rabbi and his wife.
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