Resources

These are pages describing various visualization resources. More often than not, this means books - but due to the way the web site is built, books are a tag, not a “subsection”.

Note, that for the books, usually what I am describing is why the book is relevant to my class. But if it’s relevant to students in my class, it is probably similarly relevant to you.

If you’re not in class and just want a book recommendation to get started, check out Books: what should I read first? (summary: probably Cairo’s The Truthful Art).

I believe that critique is a valuable skill for both practicing and learning Visualization (see Tutorial 4: Critique). The book Discussing Design is a great resource to learn it.

If you need to pick a book to get started, I recommend Alberto Cairo’s the The Truthful Art.

Alberto Cairo is a designer and journalist who has become a visualization educator. He has written some excellent books on visualization. I use excerpts from his books “The Functional Art” and “The Truthful Art” in my class.

This is the closest thing to a “primary textbook” for my class. The course shares a similar philosophy to the book, and we’ll read almost all of the chapters. The UW library has electronic copies, so students do not need to buy it.

Jacques Bertin was a French cartographer who had lots of ideas about visualization, before there was a field of visualization. Many of the ideas we use in visualization today can be seen in his work, although reading these “original sources” can be challenging.

Students often ask for resources on Graphic Design. I’ll suggest two books that have been readings in class in the past (and might be this year if we do the Graphic Design module): “The Non-Designer’s Design Book” and “Design for Hackers: Reverse Engineering Beauty.”

Edward Tufte’s books are probably the most famous (or infamous) books on visualization. They are more art history books, full of historical examples and commentary, than books to help you understand or design visualizations. However, they are very influential, and everyone in the field (and many people outside of the field) talks about them. We look at parts of them for class.

This is a thin little book (I know several people who read it in one sitting) that discusses the psychology of visual perception and its relationship to visualization and design. It’s not very deep, but it’s a great place to get started in appreciating how understanding how we see can help us be better designers.

Resources

Discussing Design

Books: what should I read first?

Cairo: The Truthful Art and The Functional Art

Munzner: Visualization Analysis and Design

Bertin's Books (Semiology of Graphics)

Books on Design

Tufte's Books

Ware: Visual Thinking for Information Design