Video Infographic : The History of Infographics
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The History of Infographics Blog Post:
Blog Video Transcript:
Infographics are insanely popular today, with the number of available images increasing by 1% every single day. But where did infographics come from and how did they get to be so popular?
Well, Infographics, by definition, means: Images that share information in visual ways. When you break it down like that, so many pieces in our history actually qualify as infographics. Let’s take a little trip back in time!
WHERE DID INFOGRAPHICS START?
Caveman Days
Think about the drawings on cave walls or the Hieroglyphs in Ancient Egypt! They represented letters, words, and full sentences with images alone.
Maps are Infographics, Too!
The 1600s were a time for cartographers. These mapmakers put the world into a detailed and visual layout. It was also a time for icons and objects to be used to identify locations.
Olden Day Visuals
The first instances of infographics as we know them today – as data made visual – dates back to the late 1700s with a chart of wheat prices and labor wages. The creator, William Playfair, might be considered the father of modern-day infographics. He “invented” line graphs, pie charts, and bar graphs!
The Start of Data Viz
In 1802: We see this visual of Mt. Chimborazo in Ecuador that shared multiple types of information on a specific topic. This was one of the first examples of unique infographics!
In the 19th century, pie charts, graphs, and even 3-D visuals were popular in newspapers and in political campaigns to represent lots of information.
In the mid-20th century, more data visuals and infographics were created, but for the first time through the use of programming software and computers.
In 1972, pictogram sets were created for an Olympic sports poster. These figures were later a basis for public signs that we see every day for bathrooms, phones, and gas stations. This is the first modern example of icons that are influential in infographic creation today!
By the late 1970s, more and more professors, government institutions, and journalists were polling and gathering data to turn into infographics for newspapers, publications, public flyers, and posters.
And then there was Edward Tuft.
In 1982, Edward Tuft published The Visual Display of Quantitative Information while teaching at Princeton University. He’s considered the “Father of Data Visualization” because he talks extensively about the need to visually represent data and the importance of data and information collection. “Chart Junk” is Tuft’s term for icons, layouts, or text that clutters up an image and distracts from the information.
The Internet + Infographics
With the use of the internet increasing through the early 2000s, more internet companies begin offering unique graphics, and more marketers begin to understand the value of visuals on websites and social media.
In 2012 Easel.ly is launched.
And by 2012-2013 Infographics are “Googled” 800% more than in years prior and 110 infographics are created every day.
By 2014 to present day Infographics are used in classrooms, businesses, and online to educate, entertain, and engage!
As you can see, infographics have come a long way, but they’ve been around us all along and they’ll continue to be around helping us learn, helping us tell our stories visually, and helping us connect with our customers and students through visual communication!
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