OMCA Redesign
An exercise in improving and rebranding the Oakland Museum of California
The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) brings together collections of art, history, and natural science under one roof to tell the extraordinary stories of California and its people. OMCA's groundbreaking exhibits tell the many stories that comprise California with many voices, often drawing on first-person accounts by people who have shaped California's cultural heritage.
Buried somewhere in the main page I saw this “museum of us” which immediately felt like a rebranding moment, the team took this to make it more prominent on the site, also as dictated by user feedback we felt the institution could do a better job for inclusivity.
Initial visits of the website and later confirmed through user research, the site felt dated, redundant, and with links and buttons that didn’t work. Information on the mission was hard to find.
Objectives:
*Overall better user experience
*Include Accessibility features more prominently
*And Tailor the specific journey of virtual visits as the museum is closed to visitors
The Importance of Inclusivity
Diversity
Throughout the projects it’s been important to step into users shoes that vary differently from my own, I’m considerate of race and gender in my practices.
Accessibility
Users called out a lack of visibility and accessibility which we quickly remedied by adding accessibility tools & made more prominent for visits within the site navigation
Cleaning up the navigation for simplification
Final mobile prototypes appear stronger than existing page and mobile designs
