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Dear Data: A Friendship in 52 Weeks of Postcards Flexibound – Illustrated, September 6, 2016

by Giorgia Lupi (Author), Stefanie Posavec (Author), Maria Popova (Introduction)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 390 ratings
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Equal parts mail art, data visualization, and affectionate correspondence, Dear Data celebrates "the infinitesimal, incomplete, imperfect, yet exquisitely human details of life," in the words of Maria Popova (Brain Pickings), who introduces this charming and graphically powerful book. For one year, Giorgia Lupi, an Italian living in New York, and Stefanie Posavec, an American in London, mapped the particulars of their daily lives as a series of hand-drawn postcards they exchanged via mail weekly—small portraits as full of emotion as they are data, both mundane and magical. Dear Data reproduces in pinpoint detail the full year's set of cards, front and back, providing a remarkable portrait of two artists connected by their attention to the details of their lives—including complaints, distractions, phone addictions, physical contact, and desires. These details illuminate the lives of two remarkable young women and also inspire us to map our own lives, including specific suggestions on what data to draw and how. A captivating and unique book for designers, artists, correspondents, friends, and lovers everywhere.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    288 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Princeton Architectural Press
  4. Publication date
    September 6, 2016
  5. Dimensions
    8.38 x 1 x 11.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    9781616895327
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1616895327
  8. See all details
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From the Publisher

Take a peek inside Stefanie and Giorgia's data correspondence

During their yearlong visual correspondence project Stefanie and Giorgia chose weekly themes from laughter to strangers to doors to touch and documented the minutia of their everyday lives through data, revealing patterns both strange and mundane. Take a look at some of their postcards to each other here.

Week of mirrors by Giorgia

Week of mirrors key by Giorgia

Dear Data

Week of sorry/apologies by Stefanie

Dear Data

Week of sorry/apologies key by Stefanie

"paints a human portrait with data"

—The Washington Post.

"not only revealing, but poignant."

—The Guardian.

"There are insights to be found."

—Wired.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In other words, "Dear Data" paints a human portrait with data. With each graph and information map, we get a deeper sense of the authors' personalities. What emerges from this information overload is a fascinating catalogue of the complexity of daily living. By tracking such minutiae, Lupi and Posavec, who both work in information design, reveal the patterns that inform our decisions and affect our relationships."
- The Washington Post

"Despite the vast amount of quantification, Dear Data feels almost like an anti-quantified self project. Lupi and Posavec aren't interested in calories, steps, or heart rate. Their project explores the more slippery details of daily life. This human-centric data is the reason why Dear Data doesn't read as detached self-analysis. There are insights to be found, even in the categories they chose."
- Wired

"Dedicate the time and the information encoded in Lupi and Posavec's postcards is not only revealing, but poignant. As well as choosing topics around items, such as the contents of their wardrobes or the number of drinks they'd had that week, the pair also scrutinised their behaviour."
"Both are mind-boggling intricate. The keys to each chart are minute, cypher-like instructions, peppered with anecdotes and asides."
- The Guardian

"Such an information-reach year could inspire others to better calculate aspects of their lives they never thought to tabulate, with the goal of seeing patterns and perhaps fine-tuning negative behavior. And better yet, illustrating our life's data by hand can allow us to slow down and invigorate our creative selves beyond the digital."
- Vice, Motherboard

"Through the process of examining their worlds in new ways, and noting emotions, sounds, and thoughts Lupi and Posavec, like the pre-telecommunication era Decker writes about, reveal a sense of space and time that we'd never considered. Through their weekly postcard exchange the two got to know each other, and themselves. The world around them was data to be collected, to be examined."
- Data Matters, Center for Data Art, The New School

From the Author

This book is the story of how we, Giorgia and Stefanie, became friends through revealing to each other the details of our daily lives. But we didn't do this by chatting in cafés and bars or on social media. Instead we started an old-fashioned correspondence with an unusual twist. Each week, for a year, we sent each other a postcard describing what had happened to the other during that week. But we didn't write what had happened - we drew it. 

And we didn't try to draw about everything that had happened to us: we selected a weekly theme. Every Monday we chose a particular subject on which to collect data about ourselves for the whole week: how often we complained, or the times when we felt envious; when we came into physical contact and with whom; the sounds we heard around us. We then created a drawing representing this data on a postcard-sized sheet of paper, and dropped the postcard into an English post box (Stefanie) or an American mail box (Giorgia).

We started Dear Data as a way to get know each other through our data, the material that is most familiar to us: but we soon found we were also becoming more in-tune with ourselves as we captured the life unfolding around us and sketched the hidden patterns we discovered in the details. By noticing our behaviour, we were influencing our behaviour. We believe data collected from life can be a snapshot of the world in the same way that a picture catches small moments in time. Data can describe the hidden patterns found in every aspect of our lives, from our digital existence to the natural world around us. Every plant, every person, every interaction we take part in can be mapped, counted, and measured, and these measurements are what we call data. 

We hope this book will inspire you in many ways: to draw (even if you don't think of yourself as an artist), to slow down and appreciate the small details of your life, and to make connections with other people. You'll find our fifty-two cards in this book, along with the thoughts we had while conceiving and crafting them.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1616895322
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Princeton Architectural Press; Illustrated edition (September 6, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Flexibound ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781616895327
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1616895327
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.47 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.38 x 1 x 11.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 390 ratings

About the authors

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Previous page
  1. Stefanie Posavec

    Stefanie Posavec

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Stefanie Posavec moved to London from Denver, CO, in 2003 and never went home. She is a designer, artist, and author whose practice focuses on finding new and experimental approaches for the communication of data and information. These projects range

    from being physical, danceable, wearable, experiential, and often use a human-scaled, hand-crafted approach.

    This work has been exhibited internationally at major galleries including the V&A, the Design Museum, Somerset House, and the Wellcome Collection (London), the Centre Pompidou (Paris), and MoMA (New York). She was Facebook's first data-artist-in-residence at their Menlo Park campus, and recent art residencies include the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London. Her work is also in the permanent collection of MoMA, New York.

    www.stefanieposavec.com

    See more on the author's page
  2. Giorgia Lupi

    Giorgia Lupi

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Giorgia Lupi is an information designer, artist and entrepreneur.

    She co-founded Accurat, a data-driven design firm with offices in Milan and New York where she is the Creative Director.

    After receiving her Masters in Architecture, she earned a PhD in Design at Politecnico di Milano.

    Her work is part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, where in 2017 she also was commissioned to create an original site-specific piece.

    Her TED TALK on her Humanistic approach to Data has over one million views.

    She is co-author of Dear Data. Her new interactive book Observe, Collect, Draw - A Visual Journal, is now available for preorders.

    She recently joined MIT Media Lab as a Director’s Fellow.

    She lives in New York.

    www.giorgialupi.com

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
390 global ratings
What to know about Kindle version
5 Stars
What to know about Kindle version
I didnt see another review on The kindle version. As this is heavily image driven I thought I would share screen shots. On a Kindle to see an image up close you hold your finger on the image until it shifts to zoom mode and then use 2 fingers to shrink or enlarge. Yes, that is a pain but in this book it lets you examine a segment more closely which is of interest to those curious about the details of plotting. I have the print book and that was frustrating about it. My older eyes needed a magnifying glass. The black framed photos are a Paperwhite 11th gen. The white frame is a Paperwhite 7th gen. and the colored photos are screenshots from my phone, a Samsung Galaxy S9. The first "chart" didnt use color in a significant way. The last 3 show the same chart without (Kindles) and with (phone) colors.Persons intereated in beauty will want color for the inspiration so print or device that displays color, eg PC Kindle app.Persons interested in the data could go either way but zooming is a big help. (and this is an important lesson to learn about -consider the color and how it looks in black and white. Your reader wont always have a color device).Hope this is helpful.
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Top reviews from the United States

M. Heiss
5.0 out of 5 stars Visual poetry
Reviewed in the United States on September 15, 2016
Verified Purchase
For visual people, this book is top notch. So, too, for rational people. Anyone who enjoys poring over a map or atlas, this is your book.

Making sense out of the seemingly meaningless, the seemingly random, and finding personality, character, and story behind it.

This book is visual poetry.

This is why we need a sixth star.

If you enjoy this, also try "Plotted."

**update:** two weeks later: I have now given this book as a gift and shared my copy with a friend. I am just blown away by the quality of the ideas in this book. It's very exciting!
16 people found this helpful
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Neba.
5.0 out of 5 stars Book of Wonder
Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2016
Verified Purchase
The world is beautiful, with all the unseen and the seen, a tapestry waiting be threaded to our understanding and expression. Through the hand-drawn visualizations in this gorgeous book, I feel that I could touch this tapestry. These drawings serve as a braille for my seeing, bringing intent and clarity into my interaction with the world. Giorgia’s and Stefanie’s drawings bring forth all the things we sometimes hardly notice. Reading about each week’s theme fetches the most ‘curious’ out of my intellect and creativity. And this inspires a desire to discover, see and interact with different informational layers of the world.

Dear Data gives us a framework, tools and tangible blueprints for what we could create with the data that surrounds us in our own ways. How much do we notice? How can we categorize, quantify and express all that we notice? What are the choices we make every day to see and to interact with the world? What are the shapes and forms that will give life to how we feel the world around us and to our cognizance? How can we be open, free and aware enough to express our inner most feelings about the world that surrounds us?

Dear Data is a wonderful fusion of data, design, art and discovery of a new language of expression. To watch Giorgia’s and Stefanie’s journey of 52 weeks through hand-made data stories and artifacts is so inspiring and intellectually refreshing. Witnessing their vulnerability and generosity in sharing their world with each other and with us is so magical and honest. They entrust the journey of their 52 weeks, a part of their life, in our hands. I find this faith absolutely beautiful, innocent and revolutionary in the world of data and design.

Giorgia Lupi recently started to talk more about ‘Data Humanism’. This book is the perfect example to this term. Dear Data presents how we could relate our feelings and perspectives to the data the world generously gives us all the time in the most insightful, humanistic and loving ways. This is a book of wonder and magic that makes us think, feel, express and share our world in our own truest ways.
3 people found this helpful
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Elle B
5.0 out of 5 stars Curious and lovely!
Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2024
Verified Purchase
Thoroughly enjoyed this one!
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SKuhl
5.0 out of 5 stars What to know about Kindle version
Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2022
Verified Purchase
I didnt see another review on The kindle version. As this is heavily image driven I thought I would share screen shots. On a Kindle to see an image up close you hold your finger on the image until it shifts to zoom mode and then use 2 fingers to shrink or enlarge. Yes, that is a pain but in this book it lets you examine a segment more closely which is of interest to those curious about the details of plotting. I have the print book and that was frustrating about it. My older eyes needed a magnifying glass.
The black framed photos are a Paperwhite 11th gen. The white frame is a Paperwhite 7th gen. and the colored photos are screenshots from my phone, a Samsung Galaxy S9. The first "chart" didnt use color in a significant way. The last 3 show the same chart without (Kindles) and with (phone) colors.
Persons intereated in beauty will want color for the inspiration so print or device that displays color, eg PC Kindle app.
Persons interested in the data could go either way but zooming is a big help. (and this is an important lesson to learn about -consider the color and how it looks in black and white. Your reader wont always have a color device).
Hope this is helpful.
Customer image
SKuhl
5.0 out of 5 stars What to know about Kindle version
Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2022
I didnt see another review on The kindle version. As this is heavily image driven I thought I would share screen shots. On a Kindle to see an image up close you hold your finger on the image until it shifts to zoom mode and then use 2 fingers to shrink or enlarge. Yes, that is a pain but in this book it lets you examine a segment more closely which is of interest to those curious about the details of plotting. I have the print book and that was frustrating about it. My older eyes needed a magnifying glass.
The black framed photos are a Paperwhite 11th gen. The white frame is a Paperwhite 7th gen. and the colored photos are screenshots from my phone, a Samsung Galaxy S9. The first "chart" didnt use color in a significant way. The last 3 show the same chart without (Kindles) and with (phone) colors.
Persons intereated in beauty will want color for the inspiration so print or device that displays color, eg PC Kindle app.
Persons interested in the data could go either way but zooming is a big help. (and this is an important lesson to learn about -consider the color and how it looks in black and white. Your reader wont always have a color device).
Hope this is helpful.
Images in this review
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Customer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer imageCustomer image
7 people found this helpful
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sleepy teacher
4.0 out of 5 stars Storytelling through pictures
Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is such a cool book. It made me examine how I track my own information and possibly make a change in my own behaviors.
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Amazonian
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Inspiring for Data Collectors, Designers, Illustrators and Students!
Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2016
Verified Purchase
This is just a quick review but I work at a center for collaborative creativity and innovation on a college campus. This was bought with the intention to inspire students by the work of these two individuals who visualized the data about themselves. So many students jaws drop when they see the vibrant illustrations of data on each postcard and then they are challenged to understand it using the key provided on the other side of the post card (each page displays the front and back of these homemade postcards). Its an incredibly inspirational book that shares a story in a unconventional way and can encourage anyone who reads it to pick up a pen and start capturing their own data and then visualize it! I found out the book by listening to this podcast: [...]
This interview will give you a lot more info about the book and one of the authors before you press the buy button.
5 people found this helpful
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Peter Vize
5.0 out of 5 stars how to create beautiful order from chaos?
Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2019
Verified Purchase
An amazing book. A pair of talented artists square off to each find a novel way to clearly depict data of one form or another- how many moments of happiness, and just about everything else - in a clear and insightful way. Each result was sent via postcard to the other artist, and the set of cards make up this book. An extraordinary work of creativity and clarity of vision.
One person found this helpful
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tara
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Read
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2017
Verified Purchase
I do not usually find reading books on topics which I am particularly not interested in thrilling, however did find myself enjoying some aspects of Dear Data. I found the overall penmanship and data drawings to be very beautiful. Besides this, I was not really that intrigued in all aspects of studying and analyzing all pieces of data filled with random occurrences of these two women’s lives. Perhaps if I had some type of connection or relationship with them it would be better but I would much rather prefer to analyze the data of someone whom I know or create some myself.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Amanda Lawton
5.0 out of 5 stars Dear Data
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 18, 2023
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Dear Data is an amazing book. It was an invaluable resource in an essay I had to write.
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Marzia
5.0 out of 5 stars Ho amato questo progetto
Reviewed in Italy on July 28, 2022
Verified Purchase
Letto e studiato per un esame universitario, sono contenta di aver conosciuto ed esplorato il progetto portato avanti da queste due designers, volto alla scoperta di sé stessa e del loro modo di percepire il mondo e le emozioni che le circondano. Lo consiglio vivamente!
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Elena Cortes
5.0 out of 5 stars Bellas ilustraciones para inspirarnos en cómo trabajar con datos de forma creativa.
Reviewed in Mexico on August 26, 2020
Verified Purchase
Este libro hace ver de forma direct que hay muchas maneras de representar datos fuera de las tradicionalmente usadas en matemáticas y ciencias. Abre un camino nuevo para acercarse a estas disciplinas de forma personalizada y creativa, sin perder el objetivo de cuantificar datos de una manera correcta. Inspirador para aquellos que enseñamos estas disciplinas y para nuestros alumnos.
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Delphine GRAS
5.0 out of 5 stars Magnifique !
Reviewed in France on June 28, 2018
Verified Purchase
C'est un très beau livre, bien fini, à travers lequel on découvre petit à petit les auteures.
Déchiffrer les graphiques devient un jeu et c'est un vrai plaisir.
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Romualdo
2.0 out of 5 stars No merece la pena
Reviewed in Spain on August 23, 2017
Verified Purchase
Me ha defraudado por completo. El libro es un compendio de gráficas, prácticamente iguales, sin mucho fundamento. Pensé que el libro sería más didáctico. Resulta ser un ejercicio más estético que infográfico y más un lucimiento de las autoras que un libro útil.
6 people found this helpful
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