Aucher Serr: Navigating Ambiguity in Data
“Data visualization is a combination of graphic design, Web development, and data analysis,” says Aucher Serr. Serr came to the master’s program at Parsons with a background in cognitive science and philosophy and a fascination with “how we as humans make sense of our world and abstract things.”
Parsons offered what Serr describes as “a safe, dedicated space to test yourself to create.” She also learned to accept the reality that many ideas are discarded. “The freedom to fail and experiment—that was new to me,” she says. “Parsons helped me navigate ambiguity.” As a “type A perfectionist” in an increasingly data-driven world, Serr finds the ability to “suspend certainty” to be an invaluable skill.
Today Serr deals with data, and lots of it. As a senior data visualization developer for the productivity-enhancing company Atlassian, she designs analytics tools to help the company better understand and use data. Much like product design, the job involves a collaborative process of prototyping and iterating to find the right solutions.
Serr finds the storytelling possibilities of data exciting. Describing a project mapping NYC subway ridership data during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, she says that it “became about the neighborhoods whose residents stayed home—a story of equity and privilege.”
It may seem as if data visualization is all about simplifying data, but Serr explains that’s not always the goal. “We have to be careful not to reduce complexity,” she says, “but embrace it in a way that’s approachable and understandable.”