Existing Site Architecture

This is a diagram that we created in order to show the current structure of the website. This is so we can become familiar with the content and be able to understand the levels of information.

AC Site Architecture

Detail of Artist Connections

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Website Evaluation Survey

This questionnaire was developed to better understand the needs of the users of alternatecurrents.com. The answers that we obtain will be used to develop a new site architecture that better fits the various needs of it’s users.

AC Arts Survey

The survey can also be filled out electronically by visiting our good friends over at keysurvey.com

Here is the link: Alternate Currents Website Evaluation

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About Alternate Currents

alternatecurrents.com

“Bringing Boston Art to Light”

We first heard about this site after the owner had approached Frankie at an art show he had at his house. She was interested in buying some of the art in his show to showcase on her website and to potentially be sold. Frankie and his roomates kept in contact with her and were subscribed to the weekly email with updates and have attended some of the shows. We know the purpose of Alternates Currents is a good one but was not perceived through their website so we decided to restructure it to better fit their needs.

Goals of AC Arts

- feature contemporary art from around Boston
- want to give everyone access to the work, in a single, strong platform
- want to build a community atmosphere where artists and buyers can interact
- bring together the diverse population of artists within the Boston community

History of AC Arts

- started by Scott Cipolla in 2004
- the gallery Space 200 opened in August 2004 in Downtown Boston
- set up a website to represent featured artists
- in two years there have been 16 well received shows at Space 200 featuring local contemporary artists
- Space 200 closed its doors late 2006 in hopes of reopening in a new location
- In June 2008 they launched a new site that promised increased marketing and a stronger community presence.

The site has not been updated recently, but from the ‘Art to do this week’ emails we have received new content featuring information about recent gallery openings. This information should be featured and updated on the website, but instead is only made available through these emails.

We also know that they opened their new gallery space at 608 Washington Street in Downtown Boston.

MAIN FEATURES OF THE SITE

Home

- statement of AC Arts Objectives
- video clip from recent event (with no information, pictures, reviews, descriptions, ect.)
- link to buy art and objects
- sign up for an email list
- link to Fort Point Open Studios video (AC Arts installment at event)

About AC

- Information about their community, culture and history

Space 200

- access two different archives: Space 200, AC Artists
- in Space 200 you can view video and photos of event openings (limited descriptions)
- in AC Artists you can view the work of AC Artists, work titles, mediums, prices

Links

- links to various artist websites that have been featured in the gallery (their page on AC Arts and their own personal site)

Community (typo!)

- links to local arts related museums, studios and businesses

Contact

- link to email owner (opens in mail- can’t view address otherwise)
- Guest Services: art consulting, art delivery, events, ect. (don’t work)

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ALTERNATE CURRENTS user scenario #3

Heather
Audio Technician
26 years old

Heather is just looking to see what this is all about. The other night she walked by during an opening and wondered what it was like. She wants to find out more about it, and because she’s interested in art is looking to see when the next event she can attend is.

When she enters the homepage, she reads their objective which gives her an idea of their goals and purpose. Shes intrigued and wants to see what kind of art is featured.

On the left nav, she clicks ABOUT AC and can read about Community, Culture and History of AC Art but yet, no artwork.

She then clicks on SPACE 200, next on the left nav, and reads a summary of what goes on in the studio space. After reading she can browse images, he then clicks on the SPACE 200 ARCHIVE to see a listing of the events.

She chooses the first listed name, Thea Reidy and decides to load the .mov file to watch the opening.  It opens in a separate window. She watches. She then returns to the page and scrolls down to take a look at still images, not of something she is particularly interested in attending. But then she sees some graffiti that she is more interested in.

She opts not to wait for another movie clip to load, and scrolls through images of the show, wondering who these people are and who did the work. She likes what she sees and wants to know when she can attend one of these shows.

Looking for more information on the COMMUNITY here, she clicks on the link in the left nav.
The misspelling of the title of the page makes her laugh and then question what this place is really about. She sees a list of other studios and artists around the Boston area, nothing about shows or events that take place here. She wonders why some links have huge red arrows pointing to them, and what the thumbnails link to.

She then clicks on CONTACT in the left nav and is left only with a list of services and a link email the director. She then returns HOME wondering if she might have missed a listing but finds nothing.

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ALTERNATE CURRENTS user scenario #2

Stephanie
Interior Designer
33 years old

Stephanie is looking to purchase some art to decorate the living room of a client she has. She followed a link from a google.com search. She loves contemporary art and is looking to make a purchase for a friend who’s apartment she has been hired to redecorate. She’s looking for a contemporary artist who has local history and makes art with a good story to tell to friends when they visit.

She comes to the homepage, and instantly sees a link to ART: Look and Buy. She decides to go ahead and take a look!

She is taken to a page full of thumbnails of work done by various artists. She sees something that would work well and clicks on the thumbnail MAUREEN OCONNOR.

She reads the description and likes what she sees. Except the price! Way too expensive.
She decides to look at her other work that seems nice from the thumbnails she can see.
The next thumbnail features a painting in a good price range but it’s way too small to fit in the space she needs it to. After viewing a few more that weren’t right, she navigates back to find a different artist. (takes her to previous thumbnail: no nav to jump back!)

She decides to click on HEATHER MCGRATH and finds a few pieces that are nice and in her price range. But now, she wants to find out more about the artist and the location of the piece. (nothing there) She clicks BUY, hoping for more info, but a new page opens from Pay Pal! She closes the page navigates back to the homepage by clicking on the logo.

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ALTERNATE CURRENTS user scenario #1

Will
Student
21 years old

Will came to the site from a link he received in his weekly ‘Art to do this week’ email. He’s looking to check out what’s new; if anyone has released new work, see what openings have happened, and what’s coming up.
He’s active in the art scene and is just out of school, so he is always looking to make networking connections and find opportunities to sell his art.

Will arrives on the homepage and sees the video of the recent event ‘AC ART’, but dosent want to watch it but wishes to learn more.  On the side nav, Will selects SPACE 200 which is the name of the gallery work is featured in and where openings take place.

He knows where to go because he’s visited the site before, so he clicks on the SPACE 200 ARCHIVE button at the top of the page, which links him to the listing of gallery events. He then reads the list of show titles that link to reception images and video clips. Unfortunatley, it looks like nothing has been updated. (since 2006)

He sees a show he had heard about a long time ago, Animal Crackers, and decides to take a look at what their opening was like. He scrolls through the images, wishing for captions and descriptions about each piece of work, He wants to know who the particular artist was that made this painting of the rabbits and the media that he used.

To find out more, he clicks on the AC ARTISTS ARCHIVE button at the top of the page, to link him to a list of all the featured artists. Without knowing the artists name, he now scrolls through the page looking for a thumbnail of bunnies, or something similiar. He finds it with JILL BENDONIS and clicks on the thumbnail.

The painting of the bunnies is not exactly what he remembered. It is shot in a different light and is now part of a series. Fortunatley he thinks he might be able to find more info about it on her site. (along with description, size and background info about her!)

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ALTERNATE CURRENTS persona #3

NAME: Heather O’Connor
AGE: 26
RESIDENCE: Boston, MA
OCCUPATION: Audio Technician
MARITAL STATUS: Single
SALARY PER YEAR: $35,000

Heather has always had an interest in the arts but her career in music has forced her into taking a job as a Audio Technician. She has a busy schedule and feels as if life is passing her by. Her newly found appreciation for painting and sculpture has begun to occupy what little free time she has. She was working late one day and on her way to the T she noticed a gallery that was having an opening. She decided to check it out and ever since then she has been wanting to visit more galleries. Heather looks forward to new gallery openings as a way to relax after a stressful work week. She likes to bring her friends and make a night out of it full of wine, cheese, and fine art.

Websites Visited Regularly:
facebook.com
myspace.com
cnn.com
bostonsoundworks.com
theweeklydig.com
mbta.com
cnn.com
bankofamerica.com
mfa.org
icaboston.org

Basic Daily Routine:
wake up
go to work
go to lunch
go back to work
go home
eat dinner
watch tv
go to sleep

Hobbies and Interests:
shopping
music
movies
reading
pianos
art
wine
friends
dogs

Filed under: Uncategorized, alternate currents, persona

ALTERNATE CURRENTS persona #2

NAME: Stephanie Mariano
AGE: 33
RESIDENCE: Hingham, MA
OCCUPATION: Interior Designer
MARITAL STATUS: Married
SALARY PER YEAR: $60,000

Stephanie is an avid buyer of art. Her job is to find pieces for her clients to put up in their homes. She has to find the perfect pieces and has a good eye for art. She went to school to be a an art historian and wound up becoming an Interior Decorator after years of teaching at the Hingham West Elementary school. She attends all sorts of galleries and is going there with the intentions of purchasing works. She collects art herself and saves only the best works to hang in her own home. Stephanie can also be considered your average working mother that cares for a family of three. She is always looking for young and fresh talent in the world of art. She enjoys meeting and talking to artists about their work. She has recently been drawn towards online galleries and enjoys looking and shopping for works of art from the comfort of her home.

Websites Visited Regularly:
weather.com
mfa.org
icaboston.org
studiosoto.com
fortpoints.org
boston.com
dwellmagazine.com
mbta.com
google.com
youtube.com
cnn.com

Basic Daily Routine:
wake up
bring kids to school
meeting with client
ride T to Boston
visit galleries
eat lunch
go home
pick up kids
go grocery shopping
make dinner
work on computer
relax
go to sleep

Hobbies and Interests:
shopping
furniture
wine
textiles
paintings
sculptures
the beach
kids
cats
cars

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ALTERNATE CURRENTS persona #1

NAME: Will Long
AGE: 21
RESIDENCE: Boston, MA
OCCUPATION: Student at SMFA
MARITAL STATUS: Single
SALARY PER YEAR: $8,000

Will is currently attending his last year at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. He is majoring in painting and is actively involved in the art community. He is nearing the end of his schooling and needs to find ways to promote himself and his work in order to get jobs and commisions. He has showcased his work in various shows and galleries around the city. He is always looking for connections and ways to network with other artists and potential buyers. Will’s art can be considered to fall under the category of Urban Art. His influences come from counter cultures such as graffitti and Hip-Hop. Boston has a art scene that has many shows that involve both Art and Hip-Hop. Will is actively involved in these shows but they seem to lack people that actually buy the art. He is a starving artist looking for bigger and better things. His art is of really good quality and showcases his craft and his unique style.

Websites Visited Regularly:

facebook.com
google.com
12ozprophet.com
juxtapoz.com
seventhletter.com
datpiff.com
youtube.com
myspace.com
mfa.org
smfa.edu
citizensbank.com

Basic Daily Routine:

wake up
go to work
eat lunch
go to class
go home
do homework
paint
chill
go to sleep

Hobbies and Interests:

painting
drawing
sculpture
hip-hop
freestlying
skateboarding
snowboarding
beer
girls
cars
the city
graffitti

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Welcome to my blog…

Hello all. My name is Frankie Nash and this is my blog. I will be posting my work and various other inspirations of both design and life. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or general comments.

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