Website Research

At the start of the year we were told that we will be designing and producing a website, to promote our work and be more professional to potential visits and even clients. So I started to do some research to look at layouts, the flow and function of a website, as this is important because it can be the first glimpse of your work to potential clients and visits, it should represent you and your work.

The main features that I noticed to create a good website are:

1. Make the sight easy to navigate, theres nothing worse than loads of links, it's too busy and confusing

2. Not too much text, too much text could be boring, too much and overwhelming for the eyes to look at

3. Keep website up to date, theres no point having old work, you should show your busy and working hard

4. Keep it simple, this is something I have definitely taken note of, I have currently changed the background and colour scheme of my blog

I have looked through a lot of artists website and think that you always remember the artists who have amazing website because they stick in your mind. 

Here are some examples of artist's websites that have caught my attention; 

One artist's website that has inspired me is Julia Rothman an illustrator and pattern designer, her website opens with a clean white background, a simple mixture of different texts on the left of the site. All of the links are organised into different categories e.g her illustrations, pattern, and books. There is also a slideshow of a variety of different works in the centre of the site, this is a brilliant idea because it gives the viewer an idea of the wide range of different products and surfaces that she works with. 

Another feature of her website that I thought was a good idea was to include photographs of her sketchbook, I think that this is a great idea as it shows a more personal side to the artist, and shows the ideas and thoughts that may have sparked ideas for work and collections. 

I thought that Julia Rothman's website is bright, clean and fresh, with amazing photography, simple layout that is easy to navigate around, and shows her work at it's best.

Another artist's website who I have found a good source of ideas and inspiration is Rob Ryan , a paper cutter and screen printer. As you can see both websites have a similar layout, both have a large image of their work, and both have a list of links on the left of the site. However I think that this website really shows Ryan's character and the personality and style of his works, by having the birds, leaves ect as the links, I think that this is a charming and fun way to show the work and also be a link. 

The website also included links to his blog, which is another way to promote yourself and your work, keeping people regularly up to date. It also included links to collaborations, other works, about, contact details, and commissioned works, this is a good showing people a range of different projects that you have worked on in the past. 

This exercise has helped me to look at layouts, ideas and think about what features I want on my own website in the future, it has also made me make changes to my blog and will also look to improve further in the near future.