The Infographic History of the World
100 infographics that follow the story of civilisation and barbarism, of war and peace, this is history done in a new way – through data storytelling.
The Infographic History of the World is the result of a collaboration with data journalist James Ball. It’s our attempt to narrate history in an unconventional way.
From our earliest times as human beings, we have attempted to describe and explain the world around us and the world inside us, their past present and future. Rather than looking to define the world’s history, this book looks to leverage the power of infographics and refresh an age-old subject for the general public and the specialist alike. Data, images, and words work in a system to simplify information, reveal interesting patterns and engage readers in an unconventional narrative.
DATE
2013
CLIENT
Harper Collins
CATEGORY
Book
Challenge
The challenge was capturing their collaborative ethos by creating these individual touchpoints in a way that felt and behaved like a cohesive system. Part of that was designing and building a website to accommodate the virtual community.
Solution
Our approach was to present the site as a visual editorial platform with quarterly features based on events and occasions the brand was focused on. Each quarterly focus would be marked by the hero and custom tags that filter content.
EVOLUTION AS A THEME
What sets this book apart from other infographic books is that is not a compilation of infographics edited together. As a matter of fact, I designed almost 100 infographics from scratch and James researched the same amount of datasets to create these visual stories. Only six of the hundred visual stories were previously created by other designers. A mammoth effort especially when considering the timeframe we had – 100 infographics in eight months!
But this brought the advantage of curation. To illustrate the passing of time, I adopted the imagery of mankind’s evolution to form a visual timeline. Four illustrations open each chapter and period-specific silhouettes are featured in an evolving footer to provide an amusing reference guide for the reader’s journey.
The visual grammar of the book evolves with its content. Changes in typography, colour palettes, paper stock and illustration styles give distinct identities to each of the four historic chapters. The content break, between past and present, is also leveraged by the change of paper stock as well as the use of other visual cues.
Chapter 1
After launch, brand interaction across all social channels increased. The brand went from having a few hundreds of thousands of followers to over a million in just a few months.
Chapter 2
After launch, brand interaction across all social channels increased. The brand went from having a few hundreds of thousands of followers to over a million in just a few months.
Chapter 3
Nation Building
Chapter 3
The Modern World
Chapter 4
Nation Building
QUOTES
“In a world where data is a routine part of each day, this publication has taken on the gargantuan task of telling the story of the History of the World using a custom designed infographic vocabulary that not only communicates thoughtfully, but is absolutely stunning to experience as a reader. It showcases the true essence of visual communication on an unimaginable scale.”
Paul Roelofs
“This is a conflation everything the world needs right now: a rediscovery of the joys of reading and the printed page; seductive and clever graphic representations of historical data and a joyful immersion in learning. The seemless video helped this one past any hurdles. Bonus points for being an attractive product that will appeal to absolutely anyone!“
Mark Mushet
“I loved this book! I wanted to hold it and read it and pore over every single graphic. The designers did a great job of bringing a huge variety of material together into an eclectic but cohesive whole.“
Shelley Gruendler
“This book tackles factual subjects with beauty and humour. Infographics in a wide range of styles, both whimsical and concrete are displayed with accessible commentary.“
Marian Bantjes
This book does nothing less than chronicle nearly 14 billion years of Earth’s history […] all rendered in clever, topic-specific graphics.
Fast Company
The book is a delight.
The Economist
This new book, packed with beautifully and cleverly laid out infographics, provides a refreshing exploration of the history of the world.
Creative Review
A new book that continues to push the field of infographics forward.
Visually
Not only is this book a chock full of rich visuals, but the organization is an artform in itself. Small details […] make this a delightful read from cover to cover.
Core77
A beautiful, useful and important book that will, with an almost certain prediction, become of coffee-table importance to anyone who wants a broader and better understanding of the world’s past, present and future.
wannabehacks.co.uk
Reception
After launch, brand interaction across all social channels increased. The brand went from having a few hundreds of thousands of followers to over a million in just a few months.