ArtisanCrafts
artisanCrafts looks at the future of craftspeople. It seeks to answer the question: how might we build an adaptive future for traditional crafts?
#Service Design, #UI/UX, #Strategy
OVERVIEW
Leveraging knowledge of culture and environment, ArtisanCrafts helps elementary schools and companies to book workshops hosted by artisans.
Duration: 8 weeks
Team: 2 people
ROLES/CONTRIBUTION
UX/UI Design
Created wireframes, interaction flows, mockups in a team of 2.
Service Design
Identified current problems of craft preservation and proposed design changes.
Graphic Design
Designed logo, identity systems and packaging for the platform.
OUTCOMES
Platform Interface Design + Business Strategy
ArtisanCrafts provides adaptive solutions for crafts empowerment, facilitating workshop booking between craftspeople and other institutions.
Research Highlights
We sought for the definitions and the associations of craft-making.
Problem Scoping
When I was traveling to Philadelphia, I found that there was a significant population of African artists who were largely overlooked in the tourism industry. As a tourist, I had limited access to minority-owned businesses, and I struggled to find information about ethnic enclaves while planning my trip online. I wondered why these individuals, who keep traditional multicultural crafts alive, were not receiving more attention.
In the digital age, how might we protect and preserve cultural diversity ?
Narrowing Down
Crafts preservation is a big term, but how do we approach the idea? We then looked at the associations with crafts and craftsmanship. After preparatory research, we identified some keywords related to crafts preservation. We realized that crafts and craft making are not just about the physical object itself, but denote a particular approach to connect with the cultural heritage and the environment.
Photos by Philip Cheung for The Washington Post.
Functionality List
After the preparatory research, our team decided to focus on the contextual meaning of crafts.
We listed our core values for our design:
1. Build understanding about cultural stories and the environment; 2. Allocate information of unspotlighted artisans, and put them on the digital platform; 3. Inspire artists and teachers with adaptive solutions of preserving traditional art forms; 4. Provide extra income for artisans and craftspeople.
Key Approaches
After identifying our priority list, we mapped out our stakeholders central to the platform. We then conducted 12 stakeholder interviews and market audits, identifying current methods and problems of preserving crafts with design and technology.
After in-depth interviews, we understood the market need and schedule. We then ideated artisanCrafts, a platform that facilitates workshop booking, and developed it to connect crafts people with elementary school teachers.
Design Highlights
We designed the user interface and service for artisanCrafts.
Journey Mapping
We synthesized our research results into 2 user personas and journey mappings. According to the user journey, we identified key touch points/pain points that provide opportunities to design our platform.
Prototyping
Then we sketched out some UIs and interaction flow as a team and conducted usability testing with 20+ people. Our team placed a high priority on making the platform user-friendly and accessible to a broad range of craftspeople and artists.
Final Product Concept
Voice from voicebooking.com. Videos from pexels.com.
Usability Interview
After consulting the testers’ opinions on the usability of our platform, we decided to focus on two ways to keep more artists and teachers on board:
(1) Leave space for an “EXPLORE” page before users sign up for the platform;
— The explore page will display use cases of the craftspeople workshop and positive feedback on the workshops.
(2) Create 1-on-1 customer service to facilitate the registration process for artisans.
Strategy Highlights
Our team analyzed the user journey of various stakeholders, including artists, school teachers, corporations, and museums, and mapped out their interactions within the ArtisanCrafts platform.
Additionally, we explored potential future developments for the platform, with a focus on integrating physical and digital spaces to enhance the user experience.
What is a possible future for crafts and crafts people? ArtisanCrafts serves as a bridge, connecting individuals with arts and crafts while also merging physical and digital spaces.
Looking towards the platform's future, we identified two key parameters:
(1) Strengthening collaboration with the government as ArtisanCrafts attracts more craftspeople; (2) Hosting offline stores and pop-up events to continue inspiring the adoption of traditional crafts activities.
REFLECTING FORWARD
Government // Team Work // UX Research // Business Goals // UX Design
Over eight weeks, I collaborated with a teammate to address crafter empowerment, sharing a mutual commitment to bringing crafts closer to people. While initially uncertain about how to approach such a broad topic, we conducted interviews to refine our understanding of craft preservation. Through this process, I also developed a philosophical understanding of the relationship between physical and digital worlds. Although I wished to develop more tailored content for school teachers with additional time, the experience of learning about stakeholders' expectations, including those of the state council, was invaluable to me as a designer.