Sociological-Infused Art: Visualizing Social Mobility and Inequality through Strat-ART

The Strat-Art initiative bridges the gap between art and sociological research by utilizing innovative visualizations to explore social mobility and inequality. Traditionally, natural sciences have inspired art and science collaborations, but sociological concepts, particularly social mobility, have remained underrepresented in SciArt initiatives. Strat-Art aims to change this by creating two main projects:

Strat-Art 3D will develop 3D motion designs based on comparative empirical data, focusing on social mobility patterns across time and countries. Along with 3D motion artist Teresa Rofer, a proof-of-concept (PoC) has already been developed and will be presented during the conference. The project will culminate in an online tool, developed in collaboration with the University of Amsterdam’s Visualization Lab, to make these complex patterns accessible to scholars, students, and the general public. The potential use for other nested-table-based data will be explored, too.

Strat-Art Generative will employ aesthetic information visualization (AIV) techniques to generate art that raises curiosity about social inequality. Using different generative art tools, Strat-Art Generative will transform social mobility data into visually striking, non-functional representations to provoke curiosity and intellectual engagement. We have already developed up to 50 different generative art pieces inspired by intergenerational social mobility data from 22 countries. Some animations using these individual pieces will also be shown during the conference.

By combining data visualization and artistic expression, Strat-Art promotes a deeper public understanding of social inequality. The initiative also seeks to foster ongoing collaboration between artists and social scientists, pushing the boundaries of how empirical research on stratification and inequality is communicated and perceived.