The Atlas tradition
Historical Perspectives explores the language of visual comparison. Its starting point is William Playfair’s Atlas of 1786. The series connects this influential work with contemporary questions: how do relationships become visible, what perspective does a shared scale offer, and how does data become knowledge?
Playfair 1786
Playfair’s Atlas connects the precision of numbers with the immediate power of visual presentation. A trend becomes visible, a proportion understandable and a development readable. The opening paper considers this relationship as one of the defining ideas of the Atlas tradition.
A tradition with a present
IAMBI carries this perspective into the Benchmark Atlas. Organization profiles, data tables and graphic comparisons offer different views of a shared research subject. Historical Perspectives connects the original work with this contemporary practice.
SOURCES FOR THIS PAPER
S1The Commercial and Political Atlas