Art Commission Site
The art commission site was built in a design sprint while working with a client.
Problem
The problem presented was the client, a friend of mine, had recently begun drawing, and was now comfortable opening up to commissions, but needed a website to display her existing pieces as well as her prices.
Role
As the sole designer, I filled all roles, including the research, liaison with the client, building the wireframe and prototype, and doing the initial branding research.
Audience
The audience for this project was people seeking to commission artwork of characters.
Solution
The solution we came to was designing a website that would lay out prices and examples of previous work, allowing users to browse and find the right model for them.
Tools Used
In this project, I made use of Figma, Figjam, Google Forms, Discord, IRC, Maze, Miro, and Adobe Color
Research Methods
For this project my primary research method was competitive analysis, since there is a wide range of artists who use different methods for displaying their work and their prices. I also conducted several interviews with people I know have previously purchased or looked into art commissions.
Competitive Analysis
When looking at competition, I went back through several artists I have worked with in the past and looked at how they presented their work and prices.
The first one I checked, Pameloo, was the only one who had their own website, and it was well presented, with a number of different filters. The drawback was that they didn't present any standard prices, with every project being independently priced between the artist and the customer.
The second artist I checked was Artful Beast, who has a graphic on their DeviantArt page that shows examples of each type of commission, then breaks down the costs of a given type of commission and an explanation of why they are priced as such, and finally ends with an example broken down to the full pricing that was given for a specific piece, and lists their contact information.
The final artist I investigated was SicilianValkyrie, who presents their options within a text section of their DeviantArt page. They present the commission types, and their prices, then follows with several examples, with the proviso that things are open to negotiation.
Persona
Pain Points
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A lot of artists to look through
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Not knowing art terms and what gets priced where
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Unsure of what a given price looks like
Sketches
In my initial sketching, I played around with a couple of different options for each page I was planning to make, a home page, a gallery, a sample page, and a contact page.
Site Map
The site map reflects the sketches I made, though I had decided to have a pure price page and merge the gallery from the initial plan into the home page.
Wireframe and Prototype
Usability Testing
I used a Maze test, distributed to the same groups that I did my interviews with, as well as some in person testing with the prototype on my phone among my friends.
Style Tile
Future Thoughts
This project was done as a quick design sprint, and was not taken to publication, so there are a number of steps that could be taken beyond the prototype where I finished. The main one that I investigated was a pastel color palette, something calm but happy, that wouldn't draw attention away from the art on display, while still maintaining a good contrast with black text.
