Portfolio

Popular Mechanics contacted Axis Maps to produce a map to be featured in their 4-page spread for their article titled: "Fixing the U.S. Border Fence" in their August, 2010 issue. This map shows the location and condition of the U.S. / Mexico border fence and was designed around the page-layout and graphic style of both the article and issue.

This map was produced for Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund, to allow their graphic designers to quickly add thematic information to an attractive basemap. We used the Fuller projection, placing Finland at the center of the map.

The University of Wisconsin Arboretum map was built with the central focus of engaging users who use the arboretum for everything from research to recreation. Users can add their own content to the map by uploading photos to Flickr or recording their experiences in Google My Maps. Researchers and arboretum staff can add their own research to the map through data managed and maintained by the arboretum staff through a flexible interface designed by Axis Maps that allows for a wide range of styling and even map animation.

Developed for the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant program, this dashboard utilizes advanced temporal charting and WMS map overlays to visualize hydrology in the Fox/Wolf watersheds of Wisconsin. The charting component is available for use as an AS3 class and is distributed open-source.

Credits: David Hart, Zach Johnson, Andy Woodruff

A geovisualization tool for world statistics, designed for social scientists, journalists, NGO/IGO workers and others who wish to have a better understanding of issues of freedom, democracy, human rights and good governance between 1990 and 2006. The represented datasets include general topics such as political rights, civil liberties, corruption perception index, type of regime, and more detailed statistics, such as averaging schooling years, ethnic fractionalization, or candidate intimidation affection.

Credits: Zach Johnson

This map, made for UK jewelry designer Nick Hubbard, is a Google Maps mash-up with a black and white graphics filter from our recent Flash work. This map exemplifies how mash-ups can still support the branding of an individual client.

Winner of the 2007 National Geographic Mapping Award, this bivariate cartogram explores global funding for armed forces as well as total citizen participation in the military. The manual block technique maintains topology when possible while increasing legibility through the use of simplified shapes and countable blocks.

Credits: Zach Johnson

To visualize the results of the 2008 election, we created an alternative to cartogram that represents population distribution without distorting geography. We started with a simple red / blue map showing which candidate won each county and adjusted the opacity based on population. Read more about it here

This 8.5 x 11-inch reference map for Best Western Inn on the Park and University Inn shows hotel locations and points of interest in downtown Madison, WI. The map was printed in grayscale, plus three spot colors that complement the graphic identity of the client. Watch it being designed here.

Axis Maps and FortiusOne have jointly developed Maker!, an online mapping service that allows anyone to quickly and seamlessly search, find, and map just about any topic they can think of, using either their own data or any of the tens of thousands of free datasets available through the GeoCommons community. This platform empowers people to make great looking, data-rich maps in a matter of minutes.

Axis Maps partnered with ImageAction to produce a full-featured tracking application for the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race. This map allows users to instantly view results, conditions, and boat information both live and played back from previous races.

This map is an epidemiological visualization showing asthma exacerbations and was a joint project with the UW Department of Population Health Sciences. The data shown by the map is collected by GPS-enabled asthma inhalers and is placed on the map in real time to help epidemiologists and other health professionals better understand asthma.

Credits: Zach Johnson, Eve McGlynn, Rob Roth, David Van Sickle, Jeremy White, Andy Woodruff

This map, made entirely of type, was a small flier to announce a party thrown in Boston by the UW Geography Department. The map shows the party and hotel locations, streets, walking routes, and subway stops and lines using nothing but varying typography.

Credits: Andy Woodruff

This website and interactive map is the result of collaboration with a team of about 50 UW faculty, staff, and friends of the UW Lakeshore Preserve. The map combines nearly 200 years of environmental and social data into an attractive, full-featured map.

Credits: Bill Cronon, Todd Dresser, Mark Harrower, Melanie McCalmont, Joel Przybylowski, Rob Roth, Andy Woodruff

This is one of the largest wall maps in the world (at 21 ft by 30 ft) and was the main banner for the very popular Maps Exhibit at the Field produced by Navteq and the Field Museum of Chicago. Produced in under 2 weeks, this hung in the main hall welcoming visitors.

Credits: Richard Donohue, Mark Harrower, Zach Johnson, Jeremy White, Andy Woodruff

Exploring typographic alternatives beyond system defaults and identifying specific typographic properties that contribute to a desired map "look" can be slow, confusing, and at times overwhelming. TypeBrewer encourages broadened thinking about map typography and offers specific practical guidance for achieving a particular map "look".

Credits: Ben Sheesley

Axis Maps produced over 100 maps in 10 days for a travel brochure for Etihad Airways. The production run included both the research and creation of all data used in the maps, highlighting vacation destinations across the globe.

Building on the success of the new print campus map, this is the University of Wisconsin's interactive, searchable, zoomable, data-driven campus map. This map embodies much of our philosophy about what a good online mapping experience should be.

Credits: Aaron Erkenswick, Mark Harrower, Eve McGlynn, Jamon Van Den Hoek, Nick Weaver, Andy Woodruff

Axis Maps updated and upgraded an atlas of horse trails in Wisconsin. This production run of 100 map pages, including detail maps and regional location maps, required significant photogrammetric and archival research.

Axis Maps updated the Chicago Marathon interactive map for the 2008 race. New features include a photo browser, an estimated pace feature to help spectators meet up with runners, and an updated interface.

BallotBank is a prototype of a guided, map-based, visualization system that uses the best tools visualization has to offer (linked graphs, user-generated classification, temporal readjustment, bivariate mapping) to help users explore Federal Election Commission campaign-contribution data.

Credits: David Heyman

This map is a multi-media tool for exploring downtown Cincinnati, combining 60 point-of-view videos with a fully interactive map. This map not only gives users a way to visualize driving through the city, but also documents a period in history for a fast-changing urban environment.

Credits: Andy Woodruff

The re-design of the UW Campus Visitor Map combines information from 10 separate data sources using cartographic design techniques to create a useful and aesthetically pleasing product. The first annual run of 100,000 copies was printed at 20" x 28".

Credits: H. Francisco, M. Harrower, D. Heyman, D. Huffman, E. McGlynn, P. Montesano, J. Przybylowski, B. Sheesley, A. Woodruff

This map tells the story of an abandoned attempt by the city of Cincinnati to build a rapid transit system in the 1920s. It portrays 90 years of history in a single, static map by overlaying four "layers" on an oblique map of the city street network from the period.

Credits: Andy Woodruff

This series of hyper-realistic maps was created using Vue modeling software to test orientation cues. The goal was to improve the experience of 3D maps by helping users know what direction they were facing and where they had been.

Credits: Mark Harrower, Ben Sheesley

A prototype map that gives participants, spectators, and organizers of the American Birkebeiner a chance to explore and analyze the ski race from start to finish. Special features include map animation for viewing an interval or mass-start race and interactive filtering and benchmarking tools for comparing racer positions over time.

Credits: Ben Sheesley, Jeff Stone

The story of a historic flood, told across several map scales and visual perspectives on a single 8.5 x 11 inch page. The Dells Map was an independent project combining modern geographic data (e.g., topography) with evidence collected by geomorphologists (e.g., prehistoric lake levels and drainage).

Credits: Ben Sheesley

VoxelViewer was created to let researchers explore the effects of changing the temporal and spatial scale, or "granularity", of their data and see how this changes what we see in these animations of vegetation cover.

Credits: Mark Harrower

This poster display (12" x 18") explores alternative methods for representing large spatio-temporal datasets in a static display. The goal was to create an attractive and engaging educational display that highlights some of the work of geographers.

Credits: Mark Harrower