Making complex ideas clear
Bang Industries is a design practice specialising in explanation design for complex systems. We work with research institutions, publishers, museums, and organisations who need to communicate difficult ideas with clarity and precision.
Founded by Simon Tyler, the practice combines deep subject understanding with illustration, data visualisation, and interactive design. We don't just make things look good. We make them make sense.
Our Approach
Most explanation fails not because the designer lacks skill, but because they suffer from the curse of knowledge. They've forgotten what it's like not to understand.
Our methodology is built on cognitive science research into how people actually learn:
The Information Gap
Curiosity is triggered by awareness of what you don't know. Effective explanation first establishes an intriguing gap, then progressively fills it while maintaining engagement. We design for the moment when understanding clicks.
Working Memory Limits
People can hold 3-4 unfamiliar concepts simultaneously. Expert explanations fail because they assume "chunks" the audience doesn't possess. We audit for cognitive overload and restructure accordingly.
Concrete Before Abstract
Abstraction is where understanding lives, but concrete examples are how you get there. We sequence every explanation from tangible to theoretical.
The Expertise Reversal
Techniques that help novices can actually harm expert comprehension. There's no universal "good explanation" - only explanations calibrated to specific audiences. This is why we increasingly build adaptive systems that meet each user where they are.
Background
Before founding Bang Industries, Simon led projects including the Network Rail wayfinding pictogram system at Spaceagency, developing systematic visual languages for complex operational environments.
His work spans scientific illustration, data visualisation, and explanation design. He has written and illustrated several books, including Gizmo, a visual history of gadgets and technology, Bugs for HarperCollins, and Emergency Vehicles, an illustrated children's book for Faber & Faber.
He also creates scientific visualisation products through Axisophy, and explores computational art and generative systems at Elxsis.
What We Bring
Most data visualisation studios have designers or developers. Rarely both. Almost never someone who can engage deeply with the content itself.
We combine five capabilities that don't usually coexist:
Subject Understanding
Scientific and technical literacy that lets us engage with complex content directly, not just make it look presentable.
Illustration
Actual drawing skills. Bespoke visual systems, not just charts and templates.
Systems Architecture
Pictogram sets, visual languages, design frameworks. Work that scales and maintains consistency.
Technical Build
D3.js, React, Python, Observable. We prototype, build, and deploy - not just design and hand off.
Author Credibility
Published books demonstrate proven ability to explain complex ideas to general audiences. Not just a claim, but evidence.
How We Work
- 01
Discovery
Understanding the subject, audience, and constraints. What are we explaining? To whom? What do they need to understand or do?
- 02
Concept Sketches
Rapid exploration of visual approaches. Finding the right metaphor, structure, and hierarchy before committing to execution.
- 03
System Definition
Establishing the visual language, rules, and components. Ensuring consistency and scalability across outputs.
- 04
Production
Building the final outputs, whether static graphics, interactive visualisations, or complete design systems.
- 05
Handover
Delivering files, documentation, and guidelines. Ensuring you can maintain and extend the work.
Principles
Accuracy First
Sources, assumptions, and uncertainty are handled explicitly. Beautiful visualisation means nothing if the underlying information is wrong. We engage deeply with subject matter because you cannot explain what you do not understand.
Clarity Over Decoration
Every element should earn its place. The data-ink ratio matters, but so does engagement. Tufte's minimalism is right for analysis, wrong for public communication. We balance precision with memorability.
Audience-Calibrated
The same concept explained to a policymaker, a student, and an expert requires three fundamentally different approaches. We diagnose your audience before designing your explanation.
Systems Thinking
One-off graphics are fine, but the real value is in visual systems that scale. Pictogram sets, design frameworks, reusable explanation patterns. Work that compounds.
Evidence-Based Design
We make design decisions based on perceptual research: Cleveland's accuracy hierarchy for encoding, Bertin's visual variables, ColorBrewer's tested palettes. Craft informed by science.
Have a project in mind?
We work with research institutions, publishers, museums, and organisations who need to communicate complex information clearly.
Get in touch