Art ImmHERsive

I conducted competitor analysis to map common strengths, gaps, and unexplored opportunities across the immersive exhibit landscape. The synthesis surfaced industry standards we could build on and, more importantly, opportunities that remain untapped.

Ideas to consider: cultural exposure · no walking required · predictable timeframe · accessible design · token collection for learning · sensors that react to presence.

Ideas to avoid: difficulty in wayfinding · stationary experience · limited seating · no interaction without VR gear · limited shared experiences · lack of cultural context.

Opportunity spaces: comprehensible information architecture · choose-your-own-adventure pacing · inclusive physical and digital spaces · no restrictive equipment required · cultural celebration.

The throughline that emerged: Art ImmHERsive's emphasis on cultural education could be its core differentiator, while its focus on global folklore would make it memorable and deepen community engagement.

The screener revealed visitors span a wide range of ages and backgrounds. Three primary user groups emerged: young professionals, parents with children, and adults over 50. Given our 10-week timeline, we focused on young professionals and parents with children.

I conducted nine interviews with participants across age and life stage. Four findings shaped the design direction:

The screener and interview findings consolidated into clear pain points and needs across our two priority groups, which directly informed downstream design decisions.

By mapping each persona's journey through the exhibit, we could see where physical space, the application, and interpersonal interactions intersected — and design intentionally for those touchpoints.

My conception of Art ImmHERsive was inspired by stories of strong women from across the world. I started with A Thousand and One Nights — short stories that span South Asia, China, and the Middle East — precisely because of how it has been misunderstood in popular culture.

The visual language drew from a spectrum of art traditions: modernist and abstract art, line art, miniatures, geometric patterns, and Mughal architecture. The color palette honors the rich jewel tones that are hallmarks of Islamic art and architecture.

Because the project was so visually driven, brand exploration was non-negotiable. I compiled themes, color palettes, and reference visuals across four directions: futurism, minimalism, historical, and children's storybooks.

For the physical space, I researched Islamic architecture to ground the aesthetic in cultural authenticity. Based on content research, my team calculated foot traffic at the Austin Public Library and sketched rooms with various information layouts. These sketches were then translated into AutoCAD renderings.

We started with a Crazy 8s exercise as a team to align on key features: learning about the exhibit, reserving tickets, accessing audio guides, using the AR camera, scanning QR codes, navigating with a wayfinder, and saving favorite items.

My guiding principle while sketching: give users quick, easy access to features without distracting from the immersive experience itself. That tension drove the final layout, which uses a bottom navigation bar with icons for the most-used features. The tidied lo-fi wireframes are below.

I mapped our information architecture to make sure every flow held together end-to-end. Proposed key task flows included: learning about the production house, finding an exhibit in your city, booking tickets, accessing the map, listening to the audio guide, learning about the AR game, opening the AR camera to see hidden story items, saving items to a collection, scanning QR codes, and finding collected items.

To pressure-test the layered information architecture, we ran short tasks to see whether users could navigate the main flows without friction:

Task 1: Find the One Thousand and One Nights event you've scheduled.
Task 2: Listen to the audio version of Chapter 1.
Task 3: Collect the gold lamp's AR token.

Method: Lo-fi, hand-drawn sketches transposed into Figma screens, tested via in-person and Zoom moderated think-aloud with 5 testers — young professionals, grad students, and older adults.

We simplified the information architecture for the hi-fi to surface key flows more clearly. I overhauled the app's navigability, added micro-interactions, and implemented a design system. I also led the content research, visual design, and AR game flow — drawing directly on my training in literature and folklore for the storytelling layer.

For the final round, I used the Wizard of Oz technique to simulate the 1,001 Nights exhibit, using themed décor, paintings, and signage set up in the physical space. Then I ran usability sessions with 7 participants. Tasks tested:

Task 1: Open the app, create an account, then check whether your friend or child could enter the physical space in a wheelchair.
Task 2: Find the 1,001 Nights collection, locate Exhibit 1: The Story of Princess Badr, and save it.
Task 3: Look up Princess Badr's relationship to 1,001 Nights.
Task 4: Scan the QR code, navigate to Chapter 4's audio guide, and favorite it.
Task 5: Find out how to play the AR game for this exhibit.
Task 6: Start the AR game, open the camera to see what the magic keys reveal, save the token, and view your collection.

Method: Hi-fi mobile app prototype in Figma, tested via Zoom-based moderated think-aloud across 6 sessions with 7 people, ranging widely in career and age (14 to 67).

After testing, I administered a System Usability Scale questionnaire to quantify the experience.