As part of my Google UX Designer certification course I was tasked with creating a Virtual Tour Gallery App for an Art Gallery in Portland. I worked on the project from conception to delivery.
The Product: KC Art Gallery is a gallery space located in Portland, Oregon. KC Art Gallery presents the works of local and up-and-coming artists; these works include digital and physical paintings, sculptures, 3D renders, and photographs.
The Problem: We noticed that many of the artists we display have followers from all across the country that are not able to visit the gallery in person to view the exhibitions.
The Goal: Design an app for KC Art Gallery that will allow users to view the gallery’s exhibitions and interact with the pieces on display and purchase pieces that inspire them.
Time Frame: 13 Weeks
I initially conducted a competitive audit of 4 art galleries located in the Pacific Northwest then conducted user interviews and created empathy maps to understand the users I’m designing for and their needs. The user group confirmed some of my initial assumptions. However, they did not visit art galleries just to view the art, they enjoyed how galleries used the space and ambiance to enhance the artwork. The user group generally wanted ample time to view the artworks and were averse to the crowds present in physical galleries.
The Personas:
I spoke with 5 people between the ages of 25-60 that are avid museum/gallery goers about their experiences visiting these spaces, habits, and pain points. I went on to talk with them about their usage of dedicated museum apps and whether they used them or not and the reasons why. I consolidated all that I've learned from these interviews to create the two personas below to represent the user base of the KC Art Gallery app.
User Pain Points:
IA
Many users had issues finding specific exhibitions in competitor apps due to unclear IA and advertisements.
Redundancy
Users did not like the idea of downloading an app to view artwork unless it offered a unique experience.
Price Point
The price of artwork at galleries were generally seen as unaffordable to the user group
Based on the user pain points, I wanted to think about creating a streamlined dedicated museum app with clear and simple IA that would allow the user to easily explore the artwork and complete a purchase. I also wanted to think of ways that would allow the user to have the gallery experience while still having some unique features such as zooming in on specific works that would make it worthwhile to download and use a dedicated museum app. In order to maintain a gallery experience for the user, I tried to place the artwork in the same manner as it would look in the gallery and allow the user to navigate the virtual gallery so they can see the artwork how it was intended to be viewed by the artist.
With the primary user tasks identified, I began creating paper wireframes of the user journey through the KC Art Gallery app.
Low Fidelity Prototypes:
Low fidelity prototypes were created in Figma based on the paper wireframing. These were meant to address some of the user pain points identified during the research portion of this project.
*The interactive low fidelity prototype can be viewed here.
I conducted two rounds of usability testing. The findings from the first study were used to guide my design from wireframe to mockup. The second study used a high fidelity prototype and revealed what aspects of the mockup needed refinement
Round 1 Findings
Users had difficulty with the checkout process.
Users wanted clearer navigation cues back to the home page after completing a purchase.
Users were confused by the shop icons.
Round 2 Findings
Users found aspects of the exhibition was lacking (e.g. artist/show information.)
Users felt the color choices were not representative of the content.
Refining the Prototype
From wireframe to mockup (usability study 1):
High Fidelity Prototype Refinement (usability study 2):
High Fidelity Walk through:
A user journey would begin when a user learns about an exhibition featuring an artist that they are a fan of. The user would use the KC Art Gallery app to view the exhibition as it is arranged within the gallery space with accompanying music chosen by the artist. The user would be able to view each individual work of art on display as well as zoom in for a close up view. The user would then be able to purchase the work of art and complete their user journey.
The High Fidelity Prototype can be viewed here.
Next Steps:
I would like to continue exploring this design and conduct a third usability study to see if there are any additional user pain points that need to be addressed. After that I would like to conduct research and iterate on the secondary user journey present in the app; the shop section.