The Candy Workshop: Supporting Rich Sensory Modalities in Constructive Data Physicalization

Constructive data physicalization (i.e. the creation of visualizations by non-experts using physical elements) is a promising research area in a context of rapid democratization of data collection and visualization, driven notably by the quantified-self movement. Despite a prolific body of work developed to explore physicalization as a mean to communicate data to individuals, little is known about how people transform data into physical artefacts. Current research also falls short in studying constructive physicalizations using other sensory modalities than sight or touch. Building on the principles of data edibilization, we propose to use candies as a medium to study constructive data physicalization processes, due to their ability to leverage multiple sensory channels. We conducted a preliminary study (candy workshop) to gain insights into how people make use of various sensory modalities in the construction of data physicalizations. We hope to inspire new research using candies as accessible research material.