Introduction to infographics
The term Infographic is derived from the acronym of information + graph. It is a journalistic term that aims to inform in a different way, through drawings, graphs, diagrams, statistics and representations. Therefore, it is a means of communication that reaches the recipient in a visual way. It has also been generally defined as, “a visual presentation of information in the form of a chart, graph, or other image accompanied by minimal text, intended to give an easily understood overview, often of a complex subject.”
Although the graphic paintings have an existence that dates back many, many years, since the appearance of the American newspaper USA Today in 1982, these elements, now called infographics, have revolutionized design, especially journalism and publishing.
The infographic has been considered by many as the root of the arts, for example, the well-known cave paintings of Chauvet (France) are considered as the first infographic representations, since, instead of being any normal painting of a landscape etc, these were very explanatory drawings, helping people of this contemporary period know what happened in that time.
It is said that Leonardo Da Vinci, one of the great painters of the Renaissance, wrote down his ideas about investigations carried out in the form of clearly explanatory drawings. Therefore this painter, who was also an engineer and inventor, used the infographic without noticing it. Another example is that of Nicolaus Copernicus; Who in 1543 used the infographic. When he developed a graphic with which he showed the change in the traditional concept of the universe. Through this, infographics began to develop modern astronomy. It is even believed that the plans and schemes of the architects and builders, together with the first maps, were the first infographics.
Nowadays, with the development of technology, this form of communication has appropriated audiovisual tools that were previously impossible to use to explain a story in traditional media. Movies, animations, sounds and interactive applications are part of a new generation of graphics that professionals in that sector call as online or multimedia infographics.
Many times the infographic is used to explain subjects, in which technical languages are used; as in natural sciences, medicine, economics, etc. It has also been proven that the reader pays more attention to the visual, and especially to the infograms. It is said that for infographics to become well structured elements, they must have a graphic and small explanatory texts. As a result, the composition becomes faster, making a drawing or a photo more effective than a map.
The infographic, like a news article, must respond to what, who, when, where, how and by whom; but, in addition, it must show visual things. That is why the infographic designer must work with a journalistic mentality and not be content with what he/she has been told about the facts. For example, to graph the place and the effects of a train accident it is necessary that a designer visits the location and objectively shows what happened there.
A good graphic picture should be simple, complete, ethical, well designed and appropriate with the information it presents. To do this, you have to make previous sketches that present different possibilities.