Aesthetics and Ethics of Visual Storytelling

Aesthetics and Ethics of Visual Storytelling at the IFVP’s 20th annual conference

At the International Forum of Visual Practitioners’ 20th annual conference this past July, (#IFVP2015) three highly experienced visual practitioners who are masters at graphic recording, graphic facilitation and visual storytelling held an onstage conversation about their philosophies and methods for telling a story visually.

The speakers are (in speaking order) Anthony Weeks, Liisa Sorsa, and Kelvy Bird.

Their examples are not infographics, nor cartoons, nor simply complicated drawings, but something much more complex yet compelling. Not only does visual storytelling, for these people, capture the moment of what may be happening at an event, but often it will tell a deeper (and wider) story, using everything from color to specific choices of typeface and design organization, or layout, to explain or highlight what words alone cannot.

Watch this video, filmed at the AustinTX 2015 conference, to gain the insights behind the visual approaches that can be taken to tell a story with words and visuals.