--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think of myself as a translator. I just…" description: "\"I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry, unfeeling language of data into a visual language that allows for feeling.\" — Chris Jordan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg" --- # I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry… ![“I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry, unfeeling language of data into a visual language that allows for feeling.” quote by Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg) > “I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry, unfeeling language of data into a visual language that allows for feeling.” [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Translating raw data into visual stories creates emotional connection and understanding. **In simple terms:** Data becomes feeling through visuals. Key Takeaway Visualize data for impact. Themes data visualization emotion Mood creative insightful Type artistic educational When to use this quote - business reports - educational media - public installations Key Concepts information design storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance accuracy and emotion? - What visuals best convey your message? A Different Perspective Visuals can oversimplify complex data. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Data](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/data/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) ## Related quotes > [I think every translator would tell you that when they look back at a poem they have translated, they want to pencil in changes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-lee-kercheval/i-think-every-translator-would-tell-you-that-when-they-look-back-at-a/) Jesse Lee Kercheval > [“So the poor translator must not just go back and forth between two languages, but if he is worthy of his calling must shift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-rabassa/so-the-poor-translator-must-not-just-go-back-and-forth-between-two/) [Gregory Rabassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-rabassa/) > [When I get bored I put Facebook into a translator, just to see if everyone's statuses still sound dumb as \*\*\*\* in every other language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-schwake/when-i-get-bored-i-put-facebook-into-a-translator-just-to-see-if/) [Nathan Schwake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-schwake/) > [We are entering into an age in which visual language is defined by a dialogue between photographers and audiences. This means not just the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilles-peress/we-are-entering-into-an-age-in-which-visual-language-is-defined-by-a/) [Gilles Peress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilles-peress/) > [Well, visual language is another boring discussion about the nature of film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-rudolph/well-visual-language-is-another-boring-discussion-about-the-nature-of/) [Alan Rudolph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-rudolph/) > [“Animation is everywhere - it is the omnipresent visual language of the 21st century.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wells/animation-is-everywhere-it-is-the-omnipresent-visual-language-of-the/) paul Wells > [It's been hard for me to nail visual language and personal style because I like so many different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelela/it-s-been-hard-for-me-to-nail-visual-language-and-personal-style/) [Kelela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelela/) > [For Berkeley (normal) vision is a language whereby God tells us about the tangible world. But prior to having experience of the tangible world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berman/for-berkeley-normal-vision-is-a-language-whereby-god-tells-us-about/) [David Berman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berman/) > [The only way I know as a director is to figure out what the film is about. And out of the theme and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-aronofsky/the-only-way-i-know-as-a-director-is-to-figure-out-what-the-film-is/) [Darren Aronofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-aronofsky/) > [I am a film director, and I work with a visual language, with a visual medium. And I try to make virtue of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luca-guadagnino/i-am-a-film-director-and-i-work-with-a-visual-language-with-a-visual/) [Luca Guadagnino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luca-guadagnino/) > [We can write the new chapters in a visual language whose prose and poetry will need no translation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-haas/we-can-write-the-new-chapters-in-a-visual-language-whose-prose-and/) [Ernst Haas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-haas/) > [Because it's visual art, a lot of it comes from childhood experience but then a lot comes from the visual language - in advertising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-hirst/because-it-s-visual-art-a-lot-of-it-comes-from-childhood-experience/) [Damien Hirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-hirst/) > [Color is everything. It's another piece of the visual language to express what you're trying to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-chai-vasarhelyi/color-is-everything-it-s-another-piece-of-the-visual-language-to/) [Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-chai-vasarhelyi/) > [Cinema is a visual language, and you're always looking for visual metaphors for things. You know, if I was writing a play about Howard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-logan/cinema-is-a-visual-language-and-you-re-always-looking-for-visual/) [John Logan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-logan/) > [I'm a big fan of fiction film where you have a story and you have to transform that into a visual language, basically working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dror-moreh/i-m-a-big-fan-of-fiction-film-where-you-have-a-story-and-you-have-to/) Dror Moreh ## More by Chris Jordan > [All of my work is meant to evoke a whole bunch of different layers of discord between the attraction and repulsion that we feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/all-of-my-work-is-meant-to-evoke-a-whole-bunch-of-different-layers-of/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I'm just becoming more and more aware of this truly profound responsibility that we carry as individuals. And it's a responsibility not only to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-m-just-becoming-more-and-more-aware-of-this-truly-profound/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [Activating is about changing people's perceptions of overlooked or invisible spaces. A building can become an archetype, invisible, like for a New Yorker, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/activating-is-about-changing-people-s-perceptions-of-overlooked-or/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [“If there is anything I’ve learned being the mother of many children, it’s that you’d better laugh at yourself, because everyone else already is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/if-there-is-anything-i-ve-learned-being-the-mother-of-many-children/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [There's an axiom I live by: 'There is no art without politics.' You either choose to engage it, or you choose political apathy. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/there-s-an-axiom-i-live-by-there-is-no-art-without-politics-you/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [Finding meaning in global mass phenomena can be difficult because the phenomena themselves are invisible, spread across the earth in millions of separate places.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/finding-meaning-in-global-mass-phenomena-can-be-difficult-because-the/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I used to be a photographer - and now I'm some kind of digital photographic artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-used-to-be-a-photographer-and-now-i-m-some-kind-of-digital/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [If you sit down among hundreds of thousands of albatrosses in a field, pretty soon you'll be completely surrounded by them, as they come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/if-you-sit-down-among-hundreds-of-thousands-of-albatrosses-in-a-field/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [There is no public out there who needs to change. It's each one of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/there-is-no-public-out-there-who-needs-to-change-it-s-each-one-of-us/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [One culture I find fascinating to juxtapose against American culture is the culture of Germany. They've gone through a long process through their art,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/one-culture-i-find-fascinating-to-juxtapose-against-american-culture/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I only want to work with transparent ideas and accessible technologies that 'spotlight' the individual's role in society through creativity. I try to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-only-want-to-work-with-transparent-ideas-and-accessible/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I think there's a tremendous amount of unacknowledged hostility in American culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-think-there-s-a-tremendous-amount-of-unacknowledged-hostility-in/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I crave to be able to photograph the way a painter paints - in a loose, expressive way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-crave-to-be-able-to-photograph-the-way-a-painter-paints-in-a-loose/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [My work is about the behaviors that we all engage in unconsciously on a collective level. And what I mean by that, it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/my-work-is-about-the-behaviors-that-we-all-engage-in-unconsciously-on/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) > [I want people to realize that they matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-want-people-to-realize-that-they-matter/) [Chris Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) [Explore all 28 Chris Jordan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) Phil Hogan > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [No man can change himself into anything from sheer reason; he can only change into what he potentially is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/no-man-can-change-himself-into-anything-from-sheer-reason-he-can-only/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 33,920 Change quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry, unfeeling language of data into a visual language that allows for feeling.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chris Jordan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just-change-the-dry-unfeeling/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Change" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just-change-the-dry-unfeeling/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df5/chris-jordan-21719_change_i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just_1048941.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think of myself as a translator. I just change the dry, unfeeling language of data into a visual language…” — Chris Jordan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Chris Jordan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-jordan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think of myself as a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just-change-the-dry-unfeeling/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-jordan/i-think-of-myself-as-a-translator-i-just-change-the-dry-unfeeling/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```