RJ's Inspiration #016 🍓

RJ's Inspiration

weekly viz to inspire you too

🍓 VEGETABLE MARKET CHART
In celebration of America's Independence Day I want to share Thomas Jefferson's vegetable cycles, a portion which is displayed above. From the Library of Congress: During most of his two terms as president of the United States, (1801-1809) Thomas Jefferson carefully compiled a chart recording the seasonal appearances of fruits and vegetables in Washington’s market. See the full chart and learn more at LOC.

Jefferson's vegetables are most obviously inspired by Joseph Priestley's famous timeline bars (A Chart of Biography, 1765). Priestley dedicated his Chart's follow-up to Benjamin Franklin, who also designed maps and diagrams. Filling out the ranks of founding fathers who produced visual information is George Washington, a surveyor by trade who composed many thematic maps including this delightfully folksy Farm Plan.

My pet theory is that Jefferson's cycles were also inspired by by William Playfair's pioneering work. Playfair sent Jefferson a copy of his work and wrote to him several times. A possible connection which deserves more investigation! Letters from Playfair to Jefferson can also be seen at LOC: LINK

My own Jeffersonian seasonality chart takes a look at flowers, not vegetables. See 2015's BLOOM which visualizes the life of all 212 flowers in Jefferson’s Monticello garden across the year. LINK

👩‍🚀 NEW DATA STORY!
I am nearing completion of my next big data story. It's about Apollo 11 and it's a boatload of fun. Message me if you want a sneak-preview before it launches, just in time for the 50th anniversary of Neil and Buzz's big walk.

👉 ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS SERIES?
Please reply directly to share your favorite viz, offer any advice for how this newsletter experiment can be improved, or say hello. -RJ