‘Data Objects’: Designing Products for Dialogue and Social Consciousness

Abstract

This article explains and illustrates the existing opportunities for industrial designers to design tangible, three-dimensional objects that represent data, with the goal of using industrial design to facilitate access to precise, accurate information by using and interacting with everyday objects whose presence allows us to communicate and disseminate data. This article presents principles and methods for designing data objects, seeking to contribute to reflections on emotional design by suggesting strategies to spark interest and encourage dialogue on social issues. The case of the “Presidential Spin Tops,” designed by the author, is discussed in order to illustrate the potential of these objects to spark conversations about data.