About the platform

Welcome to the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design Data Platform: a rhizomatic map of projects, methods, people and organisations.

We use a rhizomatic mapping method, inspired by mycelium and constellations of stars, to showcase the emerging knowledge from the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design. There is no centre and no hierarchy: people, partners, projects and methods are equals, and any of them can be where you start. Explore the entries across this constellation to learn about the organisations and methods we have worked with, and the projects we have worked on.

The platform is a publicly accessible resource for artists, researchers, the public and funders, to discover, follow and adapt methods for their own contexts and creative practice.

About the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design

The Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design is a global leader in inclusive design and works with government, business, academia and the third sector to conduct research and knowledge exchange projects. Learn more about the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design.

The map. The map shows every entry and every connection. Each entry sits near the ones it is connected to. Hover over or focus an entry to see its connections, and select it to open its details.

Follow connections. In the details, every connection can be selected in turn. The entries you open form a path at the top of the details, so you can always step back. On a first visit, a short guide shows how; you can show the guide again at any time.

Two arrangements. Constellation places entries by their connections. By type sorts the same entries into columns of partners, people, projects and methods. Switch between them with the control at the top of the map.

Search, filter or read it as a table. Search and the type filters narrow the map down. The table view holds the same data as lists, which many people find easier to read. Every entry also has its own page, and the projects, methods, people and partners lists give a short summary of each.

This site aims to meet WCAG 2.2 level AA. It has been checked with an automated tool (axe) at desktop and mobile widths, and by keyboard. It has not had a formal conformance audit or testing with disabled users, so it does not claim conformance, and some problems may remain. If something doesn’t work for you, please let the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design know.

Keyboard

• Tab moves through links and controls. A skip link at the top of every page goes straight to the content.
• The map is one stop in the tab order. Inside it, the arrow keys move to the nearest entry in that direction, in either arrangement, and Enter or Space opens its details. From the details, each connection is a button, so you can follow connections from entry to entry.
• Escape closes the details panel and dialogs, and focus goes back to where you were.
• Ctrl/⌘ K goes to search, Ctrl/⌘ E switches between map and table, and ? lists all shortcuts.
• Ctrl/⌘ ← → makes the details panel wider or narrower.

Screen readers

Pages use landmarks and headings in a logical order. Each entry on the map is announced with its type and number of connections. Search results, filter changes and switching arrangement are announced. The guide never moves your focus: its cards sit just before what they point at, and can be skipped. The table view is the recommended way to explore the whole network with a screen reader: each entity type is a table with a caption and row headers.

Seeing and reading

• Text colours meet WCAG AA contrast against their backgrounds.
• Each entity type has a shape as well as a colour, so type never depends on colour alone.
• Every entry on the map is drawn at the same size: none is shown as more important than another.
• Text resizes with your browser settings, and pages reflow on screens down to 320 pixels wide.
• Animation (the guide’s pulse and the move between arrangements) is switched off if your system asks for reduced motion.
• Every page works without JavaScript, apart from search, filters and the details panel.

This site is in English. To read it in another language, use your browser’s translation tools.

Step 1: choose a translation tool

• Google Translate extension (for Chrome)
• Microsoft Translator (for Edge)
• To Google Translate (for Firefox)
• Safari built-in translation (for Safari)

Step 2: install or enable the tool

Chrome, Edge and Firefox: follow the link above, then choose Add to browser or Install. Safari on macOS Big Sur or later needs no installation: open the page, click the Translate button in the address bar and choose your language.

Step 3: translate this website

Open the extension or browser feature, select your language, and the page translates in place.

Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design Data Platform. Research content from the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art. Designed and built by Chongbo Ning.