Strong or weak – a data-zine by Nina Koch

To be strong is a demand from our capitalist societies. Isn’t it? But who defines, what „strong“ means, and is „weak“ always worse? For whom?

When I came to finish my design studies, it was clear to me that I wanted to do „something with data“ and something approachable out of paper, that anyone can just take and read. I wanted to find a non-commercial format, for a non-commercial design.

A „zine“ is something handmade and easy to copy. Just one sheet of paper, folded into a magazine. Unprofessional and approachable. Just what I was looking for. The idea of the data-zine was born.

On three double pages the idea of being strong vs. weak is discussed with different charts concerning a certain topic. These are: going sick to work, how strong are humans in comparison to animals and who is strong or weak in our society. On the very last page there is the invitation to do an own data visualization and explore the topic by yourself. On the backside of the publication there is a poster discussing the topic graphically.