An online showcase for students and alumni of CU Denver.
The digital design program and the broader College of Arts and Media currently lack a centralized, cohesive digital presence to showcase the exceptional work of their students and alumni. This limits the program's ability to gain public visibility, attract prospective students, and connect students and alumni with industry professionals.
Desktop devices are preferred by users who are looking to view full galleries with an entire description of the work, fully understand the context behind a CAM student's design process, and for students to display their personal gallery to be represented correctly by the school and the website.
Mobile devices are preferred by users who want to navigate the interface smoothly and find content efficiently and fast, and for users that want gather inspiration and resources from current students.
Tablet devices are preferred by users who want to check their work and update their exhibition and make visual changes anywhere. Tablet users may also prefer this device to view work processes of an artist to influence their decision to hire a student for commision.
Sketches and work process of the prototype.
Artist profile pages.
Full menus.
Alternative menus.
Project menus.
Homepages.
Homepage.
Project page.
Artist profile page.
Homepages.
Project pages.
Artist profiles.
Homepage.
We looked to understand user needs and developed specific user goals to enhance the end solution of our prototype.
Students/alumni need a way to gain exposure to industry professionals and recruiters by showcasing their digital portfolios.
Users need to learn about the impact of the CAM program, showcasing the curriculum and the effects of the CU Denver digital design program.
Users need a feeling of online engagement and a sense of community.
Users want a smooth digital experience through responsive design, user interaction, and clear organization of the navigation bar.
Users feel a need for an immersive experience that feels cohesive to the purpose of the showcase
Art enthusiasts and community members need a way to view and engage with the creative output of students/alumni.
Here is additional user goals determined through research, ideation, and assumptions.
Our competitive analysis indicates that a simple but immersive website will create uniqueness in the interface. Elements such as imagery, video, and animations can create a positive user experience. Additional desk research has indicated a lack of uniqueness can create disassociation within a website. A popular reason why users visit other online showcases and collections is for both intellectual and inspiration purposes, either for a visitor’s own research or inspiration.
Credibility is also a huge factor, as we are showcasing other peoples work and contact information. The goal of this interface is to make sure that it has a purpose and that it accomplishes its goal of user interaction.
Being able to avoid frustrations, whether it comes from the user or the people being displayed, a set of guidelines and ideas should be laid out. Our main goal is to showcase student work, then our main question is, how can we do that effectively, etc.
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