At the same
time information designer Edward Tufte tackled ways of compressing
three-dimensional material
into a two-dimensional format for his second book (Envisioning Information,
1990), he set out to develop an object that no flat view could adequately
capture. The result is the stainless-steel sculpture Escaping Flatland-each
of its surfaces is a changing 2-D experience. "The surface is like
a mirror that reflects the value, hue, and saturation of color but
no shapes," Tufte says. "Because it's incredibly responsive to light,
perpetual color-field studies emerge." However, the champion of
visual complexity cautions against too closely equating the sculpture
with his information graphics: "It may just be that a person who
loves to see things did both." -Kristi Cameron
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