Explore Explain
Arts & Culture Podcasts
Explore Explain is a long-form podcast and video series hosted by Andy Kirk and launched early 2020. It goes deep behind the scenes of data visualisation projects.
Each episode is structured around a conversation with visualisation designers, developers, or data journalists to explore the design story behind a single visualisation or a related major project. Guests explain the thought-process behind and share insights about the myriad little decisions that underpin the finished works they produce.
Audiences will gain an appreciation of the what, the why and the how, learning about the hidden problems and challenges, the breakthroughs and the eureka moments. You'll learn about the things that were done and the things that were not done, the pressures and frustrations as well as successes and failures.
Each season comprises nine episodes and always seeks to include guests representing a diverse cast of talented practitioners from across the field and around the world, showcasing a wide variety of different types of visualisation work.
Every episode is published as both an audio interview as well as an enhanced video conversation, enriched by detailed visuals that illuminate the discussions. Visit the Youtube channel to see all the recordings, including shorter highlight episodes.
To read more about each episode, and browse through the full archive of conversations, visit the Podcast page on Andy Kirk's Visualising Data website. Explore Explain is a Bethany Andrew production.
Location:
United States
Genres:
Arts & Culture Podcasts
Description:
Explore Explain is a long-form podcast and video series hosted by Andy Kirk and launched early 2020. It goes deep behind the scenes of data visualisation projects. Each episode is structured around a conversation with visualisation designers, developers, or data journalists to explore the design story behind a single visualisation or a related major project. Guests explain the thought-process behind and share insights about the myriad little decisions that underpin the finished works they produce. Audiences will gain an appreciation of the what, the why and the how, learning about the hidden problems and challenges, the breakthroughs and the eureka moments. You'll learn about the things that were done and the things that were not done, the pressures and frustrations as well as successes and failures. Each season comprises nine episodes and always seeks to include guests representing a diverse cast of talented practitioners from across the field and around the world, showcasing a wide variety of different types of visualisation work. Every episode is published as both an audio interview as well as an enhanced video conversation, enriched by detailed visuals that illuminate the discussions. Visit the Youtube channel to see all the recordings, including shorter highlight episodes. To read more about each episode, and browse through the full archive of conversations, visit the Podcast page on Andy Kirk's Visualising Data website. Explore Explain is a Bethany Andrew production.
Language:
English
Website:
https://pod.co/exploreexplain
Episodes
S5E1 - Rebecca Conroy & Duncan Swain
4/26/2024
Welcome to episode 1 of season 5 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
For this season opener, I am delighted to welcome Rebecca Conroy, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, and Duncan Swain, Co-Founder and Creative Partner, from Beyond Words, a design studio based in London, UK. We explore Rebecca and Duncan's career backgrounds, the origin story behind the founding of their studio, and how their subsequent creative and commercial journey over the past decade has been built upon a culture shaped by strong values.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:07:47
S4E9 - Chloe Whiteaker & Marie Patino
1/16/2024
Welcome to episode 9 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this season finale, I am delighted to welcome Chloe Whiteaker, Data Visualization Team Leader, and Marie Patino, Graphics Reporter, from Bloomberg News in New York. We explore the story behind their unique data visualisation project analysing the staggering wealth of a pop-music phenomenon: "Taylor Swift Vaults Into Billionaire Ranks with Blockbuster Eras Tour".
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:09:54
S4E8 - Denise Lu
12/12/2023
Welcome to episode 8 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Denise Lu, Graphics reporter at Bloomberg News, based in New York City. We explore the story behind her side project visualising her analysis of the tracks played during the reunion shows of her favourite band, Pavement. The day before this episode was launched, it was announced that this project had won 'The Pudding Cup' 2023 gold prize - congratulations to Denise!
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:10:08
S4E7 - Amanda Shendruk
11/29/2023
Welcome to episode 7 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Amanda Shendruk, Opinion Graphics Reporter at the Washington Post, based in Edinburgh, UK. We explore the story behind Amanda's visual article for Opinions titled 'Audiences want a different climate change message. Hollywood should deliver.' looking at the portrayal of climate change in movies and TV shows.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:07:06
S4E6 - Chimdi Nwosu
11/8/2023
Welcome to episode 6 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Chimdi Nwosu, a Data Visualization Manager based in British Columbia, Canada. We explore the story behind not one but two of his wonderful Tableau-based data visualisation projects: 'Incarcerated in America' (published August 2021) and 'Press Freedom Index' (published May 2023).
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:07:42
S4E5 - Lora Oehlberg & Samuel Huron
7/31/2023
Welcome to episode 5 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Lora Oehlberg, Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of Calgary in Canada, and Samuel Huron, Associate Professor in Design at the Institut Polytechnique de Paris in France. We explore the story behind their work, with fellow co-authors Wesley Willett and Till Nagel, on the new book 'Making with Data: Physical Design and Craft in a Data-Driven World', published December 2022, to learn more about the field of data physicalisation and the editorial process behind creating this book.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:09:06
S4E4 - The Nightingale Editorial Team
6/13/2023
Welcome to episode 4 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this special episode I am delighted to welcome the editorial team behind Nightingale Magazine, the journal of the Data Visualization Society: Claire Santoro, Emily Barone, Julie Brunet, and Jason Forrest. We explore the story behind the team's work on the new Nightingale print magazine, learning about the context, the content, the design, and key reflections from creating the first few issues.
This episode was live-recorded on stage as part of Outlier Conference, which took place in Porto in early May 2023. Jason was live in-person for the conversation which was enriched with pre-recorded video contributions from Claire, Emily, and Julie.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:00:59:35
S4E3 - Steph Bradley
5/15/2023
Welcome to episode 3 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Steph Bradley, a freelance designer based in Chicago, USA. We explore the story behind her work on the wonderfully charming 'Traveling June Bug', Steph's award-winning capstone project to visualise the objects, the diaries, the destinations, and the timelines across her Grandmother's 30 years of documented travels.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:00:53
S4E2 - Will Chase & Jared Whalen
4/4/2023
Welcome to episode 2 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this latest episode, I am delighted to welcome Will Chase, Visual Stories Editor, and Jared Whalen, Data Visual Journalist, both working at Axios and based in the US. We explore the story behind their work on a project to visualise the changing trends in popularity and dimensions of pickup trucks 'Pickup Trucks: From Workhorse to Joyride'.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:12:46
S4E1 - Neil Richards
2/20/2023
Welcome to episode 1 of season 4 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
For this season opener, I am delighted to welcome Neil Richards, Global Data Fluency Lead at JLL based in Derbyshire, UK. We explore the story behind Neil's new book 'Questions in Dataviz: A Data-Driven Process for Data Visualisation' to learn about the mental, practical, and creative process of writing his first title.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:00:56:58
S3E9 - Francis Gagnon
10/28/2022
Welcome to episode 9 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Francis Gagnon, founder of Voilà:, an information design firm based in Montreal, Canada.
For this season finale, we embarked on a detailed exploration to learn about the process of setting up a data visualisation company as Francis explained the story behind evolving from being an independent professional, working alone, to a team of nine.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:18:26
S3E8 - Ros Pearce
9/13/2022
Welcome to episode 8 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Ros Pearce, Visual Data Journalist at The Economist.
We had a detailed conversation to explore the clever thinking behind an in-depth data study titled 'Nearly half of Mariupol has suffered grave damage' looking at the early phase of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, published in April 2022.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of the design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:08:45
S3E7 - Mick Yang & Nur Munirah Mansoor
7/27/2022
Welcome to episode 7 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Mick Yang, who at the time of the recording was the Partnerships Executive, and Munirah Mansoor, Visual Designer, at Kontinentalist, based in Singapore.
We had a detailed conversation about the data and design story behind a data story 'Sexual violence in Singapore: a crisis', produced and published by the Kontinentalist studio in 2021.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of the design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Please note: As the project title will already suggest, please note this conversation discusses the communication and analysis of data relating to sexual assault and violence, hence the decision to mark this episode as including explicit content.
Duration:01:17:09
S3E6 - Sam Parsons
5/30/2022
Welcome to episode 6 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Sam Parsons, Senior Analytics Consultant with Biztory.
We had a detailed conversation about the data and design story behind Sam's visualisation 'Rivers of Time', a vast visual study of time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Sam's design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:05:32
S3E5 - Valentina D'Efilippo
4/7/2022
Welcome to episode 5 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Valentina D'Efilippo, freelance design director, trainer, speaker, and author.
We had a detailed conversation about the data and design story behind Valentina's project 'London Under The Microscope', a unique visualisation-sonification video project portraying the impact of Covid-19 on London.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Valentina's design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:12:04
S3E4 - Eleanor Lutz & Lisa Waananen Jones
10/25/2021
Welcome to episode 4 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Eleanor Lutz, Graphics Editor at New York Times, and Lisa Waananen Jones, journalist, designer, and Professor.
We had a detailed conversation about the data and design story behind the New York Times' ongoing project to track the coronavirus status around the world and across the States.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of their design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:01:08
S3E3 - Jane Zhang
6/17/2021
Welcome to episode 3 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Jane Zhang, an independent data visualization designer based in Toronto.
We had a detailed conversation about the design story behind a project Jane worked on titled the 'The food your grandmother made'.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Jane's design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:01:45
S3E2 - Thomas Clever
5/20/2021
Welcome to episode 2 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Thomas Clever, co-founder and Managing Director of data design and technology company, 'CLEVERºFRANKE'.
We had a detailed conversation about the design story behind a project he and his team worked on titled the 'Globalance World'.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Thomas' team's design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:05:06
S3E1 - Andrea Lau
4/22/2021
Welcome to episode 1 of season 3 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Andrea Lau, data visualisation designer and co-founder of the Australian-based data visualisation consultancy 'Small Multiples'.
We had a detailed conversation about the design story behind a project she and her team worked on for the UNDP during 2020 titled the 'COVID-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Data Insight Platform'.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Andrea's team design workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:08:42
S2E9 - Miriam Quick & Stefanie Posavec
12/18/2020
Welcome to episode 9 of season 2 of Explore Explain, a long-form video and podcast series all about data visualisation design.
In this episode I am delighted to welcome Miriam Quick - journalist, researcher, and author - and Stefanie Posavec - designer, artist, and author.
We had a detailed conversation about their creative process developing and designing a new book they co-authored titled 'I am a book. I am a portal to the universe.', which was published in September 2020.
As well as listening to this show, you can watch the video of this conversation, illuminated by accompanying visual details of Miriam and Stef's collaborative workflow. Head over to Youtube and visit the Explore Explain channel.
Duration:01:06:58