editing and design of heavy knowledge
Harnessing XXL information
Our topic is fascinating, but our information is total overload.
Um… how did that happen?
Well, our researchers delivered it like that.
Loads of text, most readers say ‘no, thanks’.
Yeah, duh, I get that. But I can’t get the genie back in the bottle.
Let me guess: the experts determine the way things work. Knowledge is the starting point, text is the preferred medium. And you never answer the question “can this be included?” with “no”. Am I right?
Ouch! What do you propose?
A different approach. I’m going to beat the monster of ‘yes but this really needs to be added’ for you.
How?
My starting point is not the content, but the form.
- What does your audience see when browsing or walking around?
- What kind of content do pages, animation or object require?
- What is the common thread that unites all the separate parts?
- What is the mix between the big picture and those nice little details?
This is how we select what the reader needs.
Are you going break this to my people? That half of the text should be taken out?
Yes. Their love for the subject is essential; it will remain. But the verbose text full of jargon must go. It was conceived for discussion among peers, not for the public.
Don’t you know our knowledge is sacred?!
Thorough editing and good design creates room for depth and telling details. The rest of the information is just one click away. For reassurance.
Hiring you, what’s in it for me?
I take responsibility, actively. And I deal lovingly with your subject and its guardians.
What do I call your role?
Tell your supervisor, I’m a pre-design content director. You may also make up your own term. Has to be English though.
Content Terminator?
Ha. Saving the world from footloose hordes of text.
“Hasta la vista, baby.”
work
reports
Establishing authority and reaching out to people
Thorough research is awfully complete. How do you turn that into a manageable report AND infographics for socials?
histories
Stories from an enthusiast
An archive isn’t a story. Select the material with care and then let it ripen until it is up to taste.
exhibitions
Using all the senses
In exhibitions and visitor centers, you see many upright pages 3 meters high. This is actually quite silly.
We are innovating in the field of digital scientific infrastructure. We were looking for someone who could make a video or poster for us for a symposium. The usual. Klaas totally surprised us with … plywood sheets with wooden connectors. It was a huge success. Using the simplest, funniest, cleverly put together stuff, he found us an attractive, eye-catching and playful metaphor for what we are doing.
Joris van Zundert
Senior Researcher at Huygens Institute for the History of the Netherlands
For our work, Klaas’ great strength is in his ability to interrogate our ways of thinking when it comes to the way we are presenting our data, developing quick and creative iterations of the figure or infographic in question. This way, we are able to work with the researchers to arrive at the most meaningful visualizations, that go on to communicate our findings effectively across multiple communications platforms.
Anna Massey
As Communications Manager at Access to Medicine Foundation
We release the Access to Medicine Index every 2 years, which puts the largest pharmaceutical companies by the yardstick. A complex, careful and time-intensive process, in which we work with confidential data that is ultimately published in an accessible and analytical report. As such, we are a demanding client. There can’t be any errors in the Index. At the same time, there must be room for creativity and flexible formats. This requires not only sound design, editing and layout, but also maximum precision, and a mastery of the entire writing, delivery and correction process. Klaas knows all the options and the many pitfalls.
Suzanne Wolf
Head of Communications at Access to Medicine Foundation
On editing and design of XXL information
the right role
Designers are stars. Editing and shaping knowledge requires a different role. That role is serving the reader.
concept
The concept as the great unifier of all content. No mystery, just a familiar approach. An example.
ahead of the stylist
For experts, content is sacred. But you can’t just paste their content into a design. You need editors. Annoying 😉
