Lobbi

an art gallery interactive app for visitors to learn about artworks and share experiences.

Background and context

Art galleries are slowly dying out.

When was the last time you visited an art gallery? Art gallery visits have been on a decline in recent years. The once-bustling crowds have not seen the same popularity since. Not to mention the many smaller art galleries that hold the hopes and dreams of many artists.

I came up with Lobbi, an app for art gallery visitors to interact with artworks virtually and share experiences with other visitors.

Duration 2 months

My role Product designer, researcher

01 The problems

Art galleries, once vibrant hubs of creativity and cultural expression, are slowly fading into obscurity. The rise of digital platforms and online art marketplaces has revolutionized the way people consume and interact with art. In this fast-paced digital age, where instant gratification is the norm, the traditional gallery experience seems to have lost its allure. The physical spaces that once showcased breathtaking exhibitions and fostered personal connections between artists and art enthusiasts are now struggling to attract visitors and sustain themselves financially.

How Might We….

02 Competitive audit

To gain a better understanding in the current market of gallery viewing services and outlets, I performed a competitive audit on two gallery guide apps - See Saw and artguide. The two function in a similar way, they both locate nearby art galleries and exhibitions for visitors to find. Here are some distinct strengths and weaknesses that I’ve noticed after trying out the apps myself and looking into reviews posted by other users:

03 Personas

Patrick

Occupation: Photographer and editor Location: Brooklyn, NY

Bio: Patrick is a photographer that is passionate about his work. He loves to spend his time in art galleries and exhibitions to get inspiration for his personal projects. He would enjoy being able to learn more about different art pieces when he visits galleries.

Goals:

  • visit more galleries in the city

  • learn more about artists behind the arts

  • keep track of galleries he visited

  • be updated on exhibitions

Alice

Occupation: Artist Location: Queens, NY

Bio: Alice is a new artist who recently graduated from college. She enjoys painting and showcasing her work in local galleries. She enjoys speaking to different people about her work and passion. She also wants to share her thoughts and artistic vision behind each piece through an outlet.

Goals:

  • attract more visitors to her local gallery where she showcases her work

  • have an outlet to share her thoughts about her art

  • see what others think about her work

04 Ideation + Low-fidelity wireframe

After validating our problem and establishing key goals for Lobbi, I started ideating different scenarios and use cases for the app.

Then, I began putting my ideas into a user flow that visualizes the key features of Lobbi and to get a rough idea of how I wanted to map out Lobbi from onboarding to finish.

05 stylescape

06 High-fidelity prototype

See galleries around you

Check out galleries around your area and sort them by categories, find out what’s nearby.

See what’s on display

Find out about the artworks at specific galleries.

Listen to audio tours and learn about artists

Learn about the background of artworks, the stories behind them, and listen to audio tours while you’re viewing artworks.

Comment and discuss

Post comments and join discussions about artworks, see what other people think.

07 User testing

Throughout the process of creating an effective high-fidelity prototype. I ran a total of 2 usability tests with 3 different users, totaling 6 different users. The 2 tests were both unique in that we tested different phases of the app, those phases being:

  • Onboarding & questionnaire phase

  • Interactions phase

After the user testing process, I made a few changes to the layout of the home page to view by category in a side-scrolling style. I also added a map direction option when viewing a gallery.

08 Reflection & takeaways

Creating Lobbi had been a meaningful journey for me as a product designer and researcher. In the process of researching, I also learned to be more inquisitive and detailed in studying the industry that I am creating a product for.

Making my own components and assets for Lobbi was fun and helped me think about how to lay them out in a way that was easy and comfortable to look at. I was able to learn a lot about how things are usually done in a professional setting. Furthermore, I viewed many case studies from professional UX/UI designers during my process of building a prototype, which helped me learn so much more about design thinking.

Thank you for taking the time to read about my case study!