Gallery Pal
Design Sprint

DESIGN SPRINT

The Google Ventures design sprint was born out of a need for a process that would allow companies to quickly create high fidelity prototypes and determine if they wanted to go through with the designing and building of a particular product. Many companies have shifted to a dual track of innovation and product development that incorporates both Lean UX and design sprints. 

I completed the project Gallery Pal to learn the skills and steps of a Design Sprint from the UX online educational platform Bitesize. The Design Sprint consisted of a five-day period in which each day consisted of a task that added on to the previous day’s work. I began with learning about the problem facing Gallery Pal and understanding its user base from the research provided. Day One began with ideation of a potential solution and Day Five ended with validation of a potential final product.

THE PROBLEM

The problem facing Gallery Pal is the engagement level of gallery visitors as they view artwork in the gallery. Visitors arrive at galleries with various levels of information about the artworks however, are left with curiosity about knowledge they may not receive by merely perusing the galleries. Gallery visitors want to learn more about the artworks, their histories, their interpretations, their secrets, etc.. Hence how might we create a better experience for gallery visitors to interact and view the artwork in the gallery, specifically using a mobile device? 

THE SOLUTION

The solution I have interpreted after analyzing research and ideating from the data available is to use a mobile device and provide audio, written, and audio/written information about an artwork’s different aspects that helps users receive deeper knowledge about artwork at a gallery using three modes of communication. To add a fun angle to the modes of communication can be the way in which the information is delivered, which can be using audio voices of famous people such as Morgan Freeman or written communication formed as stories. 

Day One began with mapping a possible solution to the problem identified. How Might We increase the information provided about artworks to gallery visitors? How Might We improve the experience of receiving information about artwork for gallery visitors? 

I began my Journey Map by demonstrating the process with which visitors would use the application solution I am proposing. First, the Gallery Visitor will choose the artwork they would like to learn more about. After choosing the artwork, they will open the application solution, choose a language from a list of available languages, find the QR Code near the artwork, scan the QR Code using the application solution, and then proceed with choosing their mode of communication to learn more.

LIGHTNING DEMO

For the Lightning Demo, I looked at solutions competitors have produced to solve a problem similar to the one I am trying to solve.

CRAZY 8’s

For the Crazy 8’s, I decided which step (screen) is the most critical for the users of my problem solution: the step of connecting the artwork to the application solution itself so the information can be accessed. How do we provide an efficient way of accessing the information gallery visitors are seeking about the artworks? 

I made eight solutions based on previous solutions and from my own ideation.

1. QR Code Scan

2. Enter number system

3. Search Bar

4. List

5. Map with identification 

6. Digital tours

7. Call in Hotline to actual people

8. Resources recommendations such as books, videos, movies, articles, for that specific art piece

SKETCH OUT A SOLUTION

I chose the QR Code as the quickest solution and drew out an application solution of how I would approach the problem. The QR Code is easy to access and has been culturally accepted and uses a camera which can be useful in learning more about the interpretations of each section of an art piece.

STORYBOARDING

On Day Three, the task included creating a storyboard using the solution I chose. Based on the research, competitive analysis and ideation, I tried to create a basic solution that makes the process of interpreting information about the artworks easy but also informative. By using a camera, I can individualize the experience of each artwork through a QR Code. The information is interactive and divided so that viewers can get different interpretations based on which section of the artwork they are viewing. I am trying to make the application friendly for people with disabilities, so I divided the modes of receiving the information into three ways.

HIGH FIDELITY PROTOTYPE

Day Four consisted of prototyping the sketches formed in the previous days. I used Figma to design the UI of the prototype. I only designed elements that were needed to test with users on Day Five. 

Through the prototype, I hope to be able to understand the elements of the application solution that are missing and the elements of the prototype that are not needed. I am hoping to learn whether I have solved the problem of accessibility of information for viewers who are curious to learn about the interpretations of artworks at galleries. My goal was to help gallery visitors learn more about why artworks were created the way they were and provide a quick art historian lens to the artworks in both audio and written forms.

Alex V.

Alex is an Asian American woman who is around 30 years old living in the Minneapolis area whom I interviewed remotely. She was unaware of the scope of the project and was in good spirits and attentive. The interview was well received, insightful and helpful. 

Alex is a teacher who teaches kindergarten to sixth grade. She likes working with younger kids because of their genuine interest in school. She goes out with friends on the weekends and is active with social organizations. She plays the guitar and sings. She is a music lover and also dances. She has visited some museums including the Van Gogh exhibit. 

Alex had a very easy experience with the user experience of the application due to previous experience using similar apps with features such as the language preferences and QR scanning. The word SCAN was confused as an action which may need to be reworded. The rest of the user experiences were accurately selected. Alex added to the solution ideas including elements such as references and perhaps a way for gallery visitors to leave comments or socialize online. The QR codes were very familiar to Alex especially coming from the pandemic. The information provided when the artwork from an art historian perspective by selecting the numbers that appear on each section of the artwork was relevant to how Alex likes to think about art.

Viola B.

Viola is a Caucasian American woman who is around the age of 60. She lives in St. Cloud, MN and works in IT at MN Housing. She cares about the welfare of her community and her loved ones and is active in making community programming better and helping people with their projects. She enjoys reading, streaming movies, traveling, and technology. She is not artistic however enjoys viewing and appreciating the artwork of others including those in  galleries around the world. I interviewed Viola remotely.

Viola had a very straightforward experience with the user experience of the application due to her experience with technology and applications that are similarly made. She was familiar with QR scanning as it is a part of Apple devices. She understood the reasons behind each of the elements within the user experience. She also had the intuition to press the SCAN button rather than the understanding of an automatic process. She liked the audio and visual information options. She did not have any obvious trouble with the design.