Vernissage
Self-guide app for a contemporary art gallery
My role
I owned the entire design process for the Vernissage app. From foundational user research to idea generation, wireframing, prototyping, user testing. The project was done over 3 months, from November 2022 to January 2023.
The problem
The gallery was facing a growing number of complaints from visitors regarding the limited availability of information about the artworks on display and the restricted tour scheduling hours.
The goal
The goal of this project is to enhance the experience of visitors to the art gallery by providing them with a self-guide app that makes it easy for them to navigate the gallery, find and learn about the artworks.
For more information, please visit the desktop version of the portfolio.
The process
Understanding the user
Conducting moderated and unmoderated research sessions enabled me to come up with user personas and outline their problem statements. My research goal was to identify the pain points that these personas were experiencing when navigating the gallery, understand their information-seeking behavior and preferences, and identify the features that would improve their overall experience.
Defining pain points
Difficulty in coordinating tours
Visitors may have difficulty coordinating with the gallery to schedule tours, or may not be able to find the schedule to fit their availability. Some of the visitors have also stated that the tour prices are a little expensive for them.
Difficulty in understanding the artwork
If they do not book a tour, visitors have difficulty understanding the context or meaning of the artworks on display, because of the lack of information about the artists or the pieces' history. Visitors also feel disconnected form the artworks on display due to the lack of interaction.
Difficulty in finding specific artworks
Visitors are unable to easily find specific artworks because of the a lack of clearer signage and the overwhelming number of artworks in the gallery. This leads to frustration and disappointment for the visitors, who may feel that their time at the gallery is being wasted.
Generating ideas
To kick off the ideation phase, I brought together a diverse group of individuals, including stakeholders, developers and potential users, for a collaborative brainstorming session. Our goal was to generate ideas to address the pain points that we had identified.
We used the dot voting method to prioritize and debate on the best ideas. Each participant was given five Post-it notes and instructed to write down the features they believed were most effective in addressing the pain points. Once all notes were collected, we merged similar ideas.
To determine the most popular and feasible ideas, each participant was given three dots to place on the features they felt were most impactful, then we prioritized the top ideas. However, we didn't stop there. In an effort to ensure our decision was well-informed, we engaged in an open discussion about the ideas, taking into consideration the budget of the project and the feasibility of each proposal.
Wireframing the solutions
Based on the solutions we generated in the ideation stage, I started creating some basic wireframes to gather feedback early on.
Prototyping the solutions
Next, I created a high-fidelity prototype to demonstrate the app’s look and feel, preparing it for a usability testing session. I stayed on top of the latest design trends and best practices to ensure the app was up-to-date and visually appealing.
Home with latest additions
The homepage of Vernissage features a section dedicated to showcasing the latest artworks and artists. This section is designed to give visitors a preview of what they can expect to see at the gallery and to generate excitement.
Interactive map
One of the key features of the self-guided tour app is an interactive map that helps visitors navigate the art gallery. The map is designed to be easy to use and provides visitors with a visual representation of the layout of the gallery. The map also allows visitors to view each collection and the location of each artwork within the gallery.
Dedicated artwork pages with audio descriptions
The app includes dedicated artwork pages for each piece, which provides visitors with detailed information about the artwork and the artist who created it. Another key feature would be the audio descriptions, which allows the visitors to have a good look at the artwork while learning more about its background.
Scan artworks for more information
One of the key challenges that our users were encountering was the difficulty in finding more information about a specific artwork, so we added a scan function accessible from the main screens of the app. With the help of image recognition, the app take the users right to the artwork's page, where they can learn more about it.
Database search engine
The database is an integral part of the app. It contains all the artworks, artists and collections inside of the gallery. It is organized in a logical and easy-to-use way, allowing visitors to quickly find the artwork they are looking for. In addition, we have designed filters to help the visitors quickly refine their search criteria.