Infografiche analogiche e digitali per il wayfinding. Sperimentazioni e modelli spaziali

The essay relates different models of infographics for wayfinding: the analog one, intended for orientation and consequent movement in a space; the digital one, designed to simulate movement within a virtual environment, similar to an existing one; the mixed one, in which the information present on a device interacts with the perception of the physical space by a subject who moves in it. Although these different forms of wayfinding refer to existing spaces, equipped with precise metric data, the encoding of the information necessary to guarantee orientation refers to volumetric models different from the real one. Furthermore, the characteristics of the information transmission tool can further modify the configuration of the reference space. Starting from the study of theoretical texts that introduced and developed the notion of wayfinding, the essay examines some experiments, described and related starting from the conceptualization of the information to be conveyed and the consequent logical structure of the space that they prefigure. The experiments in question are: - the project for intermodal urban wayfinding (pedestrian-bus-vehicle-cycle) for the university campus of Reggio Calabria, also developed for mobile devices; - the internal signage project of the university campus in Reggio Calabria, based on a system of self-intersecting nodes and connections arranged within a threedimensional spatial structure; - the virtual visit project of the Pinacoteca Civica of Reggio Calabria, in which the graphic interface allows you to explore the spaces in a similar way to a real visit or, alternatively, according to thematic visit itineraries (chronological, by author, by type of painting, etc.; - the project for the tourist-cultural wayfinding of the historic center of Reggio Calabria, characterized by physical paths that overlap with virtual paths and define an augmented, material and immaterial space. The four experiments were developed by highlighting, in each of them, as many different qualities that every wayfinding project should take into consideration. The comparison of these experiences allows us to make some reflections on the ways in which the same space can assume different configurations depending on the type of information conveyed by projects characterized by integrated, accessible and inclusive communication.