Illuminating Infographic Visualizes Existence as an Intricate Winding “Time Spiral”

In the grand scheme of things, our existence is a blip on the radar. Or, in the case of the work by Pablo Carlos Budassi, the tail end of a very long spiral. The infographic illustrator has created Nature Timespiral, a design that starts with the Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago and ends in the present day with humans as city dwellers.

Budassi created a visual system for the infographic. “Every billion years is represented in a 90° angle of the spiral,” he writes. “Additional details about our recent 500 million years are represented in the last 90° of the spiral.” Combining the dazzling beauty of the galaxy with scenes familiar to us on Earth, the events include the “emergence of cosmic structures,” the birth of the solar system, glacial periods, and the evolution of the human species.

Nature Timespiral isn’t the first graphic that Budassi has created. “I usually come up with an idea inspired by existing infographics or after finding Wikipedia pages that don't have images,” he tells My Modern Met. Budassi focuses on science-related topics, which requires him to be extra careful with his information—while also knowing that it will change. “After astronomy and science advance, further changes will be needed every couple of years if I want to keep these graphics updated to the latest knowledge.”

Although visually complex, Budassi starts every graphic with a simple pencil drawing. “Then, it’s a week or two of research and discussion with my friend and teacher professor Rasmus Grønfeldt Winther,” he explains, “and then I assemble the final graphic as a collage of public domain textures and some original photos and illustrations.”

This style—both a mix of informative and dense—is what draws viewers to his work. “I think my graphics (especially my logarithmic universe illustration) became so popular because of the realistic photography style mixed out with a content that tries to condense as many details and data as possible about the subject.”

You can buy a print of Nature Timespiral on Budassi’s website.