Information/Instructional Design

“ Where the graphics reveal the data”

                                                                                   -Edwards Tufte, 2001

Information or instructional design is the process of gathering, filtering and presenting data in a clear, organised and informative way. The output of an information design is sometimes expressed in written instructions, plans, sketches and drawings. It allows the viewer to easily decode information, such as stats and numbers, which teaches them and helps them understand the meaning and essence of the information.

Information/instructional designs play an important part in our everyday lives. To be living in a society without all our mass information being filtered and organised clearly, would result in a huge build up of information that would not be clearly understood. If information can not be understood it can not become knowledge to the viewer. There would be a large mass of information that would never reach or be given the opportunity to interact with viewers.

Some Information/ Instructional design examples:

Otto Neurath - ISOTYPE

Neurath strongly believed in the power of picture to simply depict information. He created a brand new language using pictures that was functional, formulaic, and, most importantly, for the people who were illiterate. This graph depicts the growth of the International Navy worldwide from 1850 to 1930.


Baby Name Voyager

The Baby Name Voyager featured on the “The Baby Name Wizard” website is an information graph that explores the trends of names over the years. Users can scroll over the graph in search of names or simply search a name to find out the trend of that certain name in the past and at present.



Chris Jordan

Information design can be portrayed in many different ways. Photographer Chris Jordan brings information design to another level, bringing the numbers of statistics to life in manipulated digital photographs. This piece of Jordan’s work focuses on the 2,000,000 plastic bottles used every five minutes.