The One Show
The One Show is the world's most prestigious award show in advertising and design. For over 50 years, the Gold Pencil has been regarded as one of the top prizes in the creative industry. The One Show has a rich legacy of honoring some of the most groundbreaking ideas, created by some of the most remarkable minds in creativity.
Category
Digital Design
Annual ID
OS23_DE133M
About the Work
NEW WAYS OF SEEING
From its Black-culture-centered international tours, to its representation-pushing online activity, Black & Abroad is known for using creativity and technology to challenge the way the world sees travel. The Black Elevation Map is a choice to see America through a lens of joy, celebration and community.
INSIGHT
When marginalized communities navigate the world, they're asked to do so using tools that prioritize someone else’s worldview. Change the tools, and you could change the experience.
THE BLACK ELEVATION MAP
An uplifting domestic travel utility for Black & Abroad that visualizes Black cultural data as elevation. The greater the density of data, the higher the elevation.
DATA VISUALIZATION
At the center, a visualization of +330,000,000 points of data, which through exploration reveals insights about population distribution, and where Black-owned businesses and cultural institutions are likely to be present, absent, and in what abundance.
CREATIVITY ON A CONTINUUM
This project sits on a historical continuum of innovative and effective Black-led design and “counter-mapping” – a map-making practice interested in establishing and charting Black geographies at times when barriers to owning your space (disappropriation) could be as elusive as barriers to owning your body (slavery, lynching and incarceration).
ICONS & TYPE
The bold headline font used throughout this project is “Martin” and was created by American designer Tré Seals based on Civil Rights protest posters. The body copy is another Seal typeface: “Du Bois”, inspired by that legendary graphic designer’s work. Seals also created the project’s original “points of interest” icon set, based on his survey of West African symbology.
EXPERIENCE FIRST, UTILITY SECOND
The site experience starts with a fast-loading preview image, during which the site fully pre-loads in about three seconds. From there the WebGL-based environment is snappy and intuitive, with data available at many zoom levels, and using the UX tenet of progressive disclosure to move from abstract (wide-view data visualization and density mapping) to specific (editorial content and points of interest). During development, the team discussed the line between Utility and Experience, and decided to prioritize Experience foremost. So while the site is packed with utility, it's the story and experience of the idea that is both immediately compelling and unforgettable over time.
From its Black-culture-centered international tours, to its representation-pushing online activity, Black & Abroad is known for using creativity and technology to challenge the way the world sees travel. The Black Elevation Map is a choice to see America through a lens of joy, celebration and community.
INSIGHT
When marginalized communities navigate the world, they're asked to do so using tools that prioritize someone else’s worldview. Change the tools, and you could change the experience.
THE BLACK ELEVATION MAP
An uplifting domestic travel utility for Black & Abroad that visualizes Black cultural data as elevation. The greater the density of data, the higher the elevation.
DATA VISUALIZATION
At the center, a visualization of +330,000,000 points of data, which through exploration reveals insights about population distribution, and where Black-owned businesses and cultural institutions are likely to be present, absent, and in what abundance.
CREATIVITY ON A CONTINUUM
This project sits on a historical continuum of innovative and effective Black-led design and “counter-mapping” – a map-making practice interested in establishing and charting Black geographies at times when barriers to owning your space (disappropriation) could be as elusive as barriers to owning your body (slavery, lynching and incarceration).
ICONS & TYPE
The bold headline font used throughout this project is “Martin” and was created by American designer Tré Seals based on Civil Rights protest posters. The body copy is another Seal typeface: “Du Bois”, inspired by that legendary graphic designer’s work. Seals also created the project’s original “points of interest” icon set, based on his survey of West African symbology.
EXPERIENCE FIRST, UTILITY SECOND
The site experience starts with a fast-loading preview image, during which the site fully pre-loads in about three seconds. From there the WebGL-based environment is snappy and intuitive, with data available at many zoom levels, and using the UX tenet of progressive disclosure to move from abstract (wide-view data visualization and density mapping) to specific (editorial content and points of interest). During development, the team discussed the line between Utility and Experience, and decided to prioritize Experience foremost. So while the site is packed with utility, it's the story and experience of the idea that is both immediately compelling and unforgettable over time.
2023 Awards
Total Points: 3
Merit
Credits
Agency
Performance Art / Toronto
Initiative Media / Toronto
Design Firm
Vocal Type Co. / Washington D.C.
Digital Agency
Kinesso / New York
Reprise Canada / Toronto
Client
Eric Martin
Kent Johnson
Client / Brand
Black & Abroad / Atlanta
Production Company
Alfredo Films / Toronto
Music / Sound Production Company
TA2 Sound + Music / Toronto
Post Production Company
Alter Ego / Toronto
Chief Creative Officer
Ian Mackenzie
Designer
Emily Plewes
Director
Kelly Fyffe-Marshall
Director of Photography
Shivam Pandya
Editor
Michael Ofori-Attah
Executive Creative Director
Colin Craig
Account Director
Jon Rae
Account Supervisor
Ricky Gunawan
Associate Creative Director
Benson Ngo
Pedro Izzo
Chief Executive Officer
Andrea Cook
Program Manager
Kaylen Dillon
Agency Partner
Meta / New York
Analytics Analyst
Abdul Dau
Analytics Manager
Anil Iqbal
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Elizabeth Sellors
Consultant
Gigi Basanta
Digital Producer
Darwin Garcia
Experience Delivery Lead:
Nzegwhua Anderson
Experience Designer
Leon Mullings
Full Stack Developer
Cody Schreiber
Group Director, Product Developer
Arnaud Icard
Interface Developer
Heung Lee
Junior Analyst
Shaista Meghji
Lead Developer
John Iacoviello
PR
Glossy Inc. / Toronto
Quality Assurance Analyst
Nataliya Vislyanska
Quality Assurance Lead
Natalia Zadorozhna
Senior Experience Designer
Joe Szabo
Senior Technical Architect
Valerian Nasqidashvili
Solutions Consultant
Kaivalya Kashyap
SVP, Head of Strategy
Priyanka Goswami
SVP, Managing Director
Jordan Dinning
Technical Solutions Consultant
Suraj Patel
VP, Strategy
Kirk Linkletter
VP, Technology
Stuart Cheesmond
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