Art Direction
Paige Vickers
Data Visualization Design
Gabrielle Merite
Illustration Design
Gabrielle Merite
Vox
Climate visuals that prove energy is winning
Context
Vox's "Escape Velocity" series launched into a hostile climate for climate news. With an administration actively rolling back environmental protections and denying climate science, how do you communicate that the clean energy transition has actually gained unstoppable momentum? The challenge was cutting through political noise and climate fatigue to reach people who'd been told clean energy was failing. With a month timeline and the goal of breaking through to general audiences, every visual choice had to count.
See the Project
Create
We reframed climate data not as warnings, but as signals of progress already in motion.
- Landscape-integrated data collages: Multi-layered compositions where trend lines cast shadows on real hillsides and bars rose from American soil. This made abstract numbers feel grounded in place and turned information into invitation.
- Solarpunk visual language: A complete departure from clinical climate visuals. We used dawn-inspired colors and nature-technology harmony to signal hope without sacrificing accuracy.
- Typographic subversion: Strategic use of Instrument Serif. We reclaimed the White House website font to present climate progress data. This created subtle political commentary within the data presentation itself.
Create
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“
I was so impressed by Gabrielle's ability to translate the raw data into something with so much humanity which all fit into the fuller narrative. I'd recommend her to anyone hoping to make impactful, clear data visualization with lasting impacts on their audience.
—Paige Vickers, Art Director at Vox
The Vox piece sparked passionate responses. People commented "Absolutely loving the momentum" and found the renewable energy data inspiring. Climate organizations like Future Earth responded enthusiastically and reshared widely. For us, the real win was people who normally scroll past climate data stopped to comment and ask questions about renewable energy progress.
Impact
Credits
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