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The Visualization of Organized Information
Liz Black’s Short Statement

I am fascinated with the collection of information. Ever since I was young I revered the act of recording and satisfied this passion by taking photographs and keeping journals of my everyday activities and experiences. I record to ensure that my past is not forgotten. I have realized that my memory can be unreliable and I want to protect my past by collecting proof of its existence. By creating a large collection of evidence I come closer and closer to the actual truth and farther away from losing it forever. However, I record much more about my daily routine than most people do. I don’t just make note of the major events that happen. I include the everyday moments that people overlook. I feel that these glimpses in time are just as important and are more wholly representative of our actual lives.

This fixation with documenting, to no surprise, has seeped into my artwork. I collect information about my life and create a format to present the data so that it keeps a record of my life, while at the same time being applicable and understandable to my audience. The best way to satisfy both of these goals is to create an ordered, well designed visualization based on the information collected about my daily activities. To keep the work from being too personal, I refrain from providing a key in my works. Instead, I use visual clues and titles to guide the viewers. The piece is about the visualization of information, not a documentary account of my life. The specifics of my daily life are the basis for the piece and are important to me, but are not needed for the audience’s understanding of the art. Furthermore, the lack of a key allows the viewer to substitute activities and compare their own lives into a similar visual fashion. Mapping out the days in this manner allows the similarities, differences, and patterns evident in life to be recognized, something I ultimately find absolutely fascinating.

My artwork is a look into my life so that I am able to preserve this time forever, but it also serves to spark other people’s curiosity about their own lives and how they may be visualized. I want my audience members to reevaluate their daily patterns. I want them to realize this so they are able to better appreciate what they do with their day and have the ability to make changes to their daily routines. By making my audience think in this fashion my artwork is functional and therefore successful.