Capturing the Life of an Artist Using Information Visualization Techniques

Abstract

Visualizing information correctly and in a useful way is a difficult task in computer science. Information is collected from many subject fields, and presenting it purposefully can often be challenging for a scientist or a researcher. Not only does one have to transform the raw data into something completely different, but do it in a way that simplifies already familiar concepts even more. One of the most important tasks that need to be fulfilled is presenting data in a proper way, compliant with the users' background and skills, in order to permit them to form a mental model of the subject. The subject field of this master's thesis is arts, specifically artists and their lives, in combination with computer science. This research will try to capture the life of an artist using specific information visualization techniques, even enhancing the already seen ones to adjust them to the subject field. It will focus on spatio-temporal visualization techniques, adapting them to the art field, and in the end, implementing all research work into an augmented reality prototype. The goal is to combine computer science and arts by presenting museum visitors with an innovative way of learning about the life of an artist, summarizing the most important parts of their lives with meaningful and interactive information visualization techniques.