Course Topics
In a world heavily driven by the production and consumption of information, being able to read and represent it has become extremely critical and undeniably important. The Information Design and Visual Storytelling course aims to provide students with the theoretical background - and the opportunity to practice it - necessary to develop visualization projects in their entirety. The first part of the course will consist of lectures interspersed with small exercises to make students familiarize with the disciplines of information design and visual storytelling. We will work together to understand the basic principles of the discipline and how to apply them in real projects. There will be various moments for presenting exercises and class discussions: the goal is to exercise critical thinking and expand knowledge of new design practices. The second part of the course, on the other hand, will be more inspirational in nature. We will discuss some current best cases, which will guide us in the development of group projects focused on representing complex phenomena. The last part of the course will be focused on reviewing the student’s works. Before each review, there will be a dedicated session for practical tutoring on data visualization tools, educational moments that can help students materialize their design thinking.

Teaching format
Theoretical lessons interspersed with individual exercises at the beginning of the course, followed by more inspirational lessons interspersed with reviews of the final group project and practical tutorials on some data visualization tools.

Educational objectives
Educational objectives In the course new possibilities for innovation in artistic and design production and, more importantly, the opportunities for synergy between contemporary culture and technological progress, fostering a mutual exchange of ideas and advancements will be explored. Furthermore the course aims at delivering advanced research skills that will be developed to explore emerging frontiers in the field of art and design and new opportunities for technological innovation in the creative sector. This will equip the students to engage in interdisciplinary projects and generate original knowledge. Learning outcomes: Knowledge and understanding: Know digital and analogue technologies and their applications in visual arts and design. Prosses specific knowledge on the cultural, social and ethical implications of the use of technologies in artistic practices. Understand the processes of integrating technologies into creative context, analyzing them considering the connections with other fields of knowledge, such as the philosophy of technology, computer science and cognitive science. Applying knowledge and understanding: Use advanced software and digital techniques to create innovative works of art and design. Experiment with augmented reality, 3D printing, artificial intelligence and other technological tools to expand the boundaries of artistic practices. Collaborate with engineers, programmers and other professionals to develop interdisciplinary projects that integrate art and technology. Making judgements: Apply the knowledge acquired in the professional context. Design originals projects that take into account the transformations induced by globalization and internationalization processes. Communication skills: Using visual and multimedia tools to create engaging and informative presentations Learning skills: The strengthening of the critical operational autonomy of students. The development of their ability to choose, compare and adapt to the new knowledge and technologies.

Additional educational objectives and learning outcomes
Students will be able to: - Familiarize with influential figures in the field of information design. - Apply basic principles of data visualization, consciously choosing how to use variables and visual models. - Develop critical thinking skills regarding existing cases in the fields of information design and visual storytelling. - Navigate online resources to gather information for their projects. - Define target audiences and the necessary output type to reach that audience. - Prototype their projects in various forms (digital, print, physical, etc.). - Consistently use key data visualization tools in line with their design intentions. - Conceptualize and develop an Information Design project in its entirety. Knowledge will be acquired in the following fields: - Information design, data visualization, and visual storytelling.

Assessment
Attending students will be evaluated on: - Individual exercises. - Final group project, including an A3 data-driven poster presenting the chosen topic, a physicalization project, an oral presentation of the outputs (poster + physicalization), the portfolio page on the official UNIBZ website. Non-attending students will be required to: - Complete the individual exercises. - Prepare individually an A3 data-driven poster presenting the chosen topic (agreed with the lecturer), deliver an oral presentation of the poster during the exam session. N.B. – ALL STUDENTS TAKING THE EXAM AS NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS MUST AGREE UPON THE CONTENT WITH THE LECTURER.

Evaluation criteria
For the projects: - Originality/Innovation, coherence and technical/aesthetic qualities of the design project, in relation to the context and the aims of the project; in particular, related to the use of media, aspects of the visualization and usability. For the presentation: - Effectiveness and clarity in communicating the project in a convincing way. For the process during the whole semester: - Active participation, quality of contributions and individual development. - Ability to work individually and in a team.

Required readings

• Lachenmeier, N., Hil, D.: Visualizing Complexity. Modular Information Design Handbook; Birkhäuser, 2022
• Cairo, A.: How Charts Lie; Norton, 2019

Supplementary readings

• Cairo, A.: The Functional Art. An Introduction to Information Graphics and Visualization; New Riders, 2012
• Wiedemann, J., Rendgen, S.: Information Graphics; TASCHEN, 2012
• Klanten R., Ehmann, S., Schulze, F.: Visual Storytelling: Inspiring a New Visual Language; Gestalten, 2011

Further information
All lecture slides will be made available and easily accessible through a dedicated Notion page, which will be shared with students at the beginning of the course. The Notion page will also include links to all the tools and resources we will use throughout the semester, ensuring that students have a centralized hub for study materials and references.