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National Gallery of Art's Website--February 24, 2007 http://www.nga.gov/ I was interested in examining the website of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC and I picked up some noteworthy characteristics of their site. The museum's home page is simple and direct, and its design gives it this appearance. For example, the home page's background color is sort of a grayish white that is very sober-looking and gentle on the eyes. This color is not at all imposing, so it conveys the museum's serious professionalism and it invites viewers in without overwhelming them with flashy content. The text of the major links is also lightly colored, mostly in light purple, and the chosen font is appropriately neat and calm. One interesting thing to note is that the home page only displays a single small image of a painting. This might seem unexpected at first since we are looking at an art museum's website, but it is actually understandable because there are so many images of artwork elsewhere within the site that there is no need to put too much on the home page. The designers of the page probably decided that visitors to the site are obviously interested in viewing art and do not need an extensive introduction to art images on the first page. The designers have tried to make the site user-friendly for viewers interested in visiting the museum. There are a number of features on the home page's menu meant to help visitors. There is a link to a site map and links for "Help," "Search," and "Contact" options. These are highlighted in reddish brown. The menu tries to inform potential visitors about what the gallery has to offer with features like a calendar of museum events and a "Planning a Visit" on what visitors can see at the gallery. The "Programs and Events" page and the "Exhibitions" page also keep visitors apprised of what is happening at the gallery so that they can choose which events or exhibitions they would like to attend. The museum's website showcases many images of gallery artwork throughout its different pages. The page describing the gallery's art collection displays many images of beautiful paintings and sculptures found in the collection. The exhibitions page also contains many impressive artwork images that are sure to attract many visitors interested in art. There are also some good features that give users a further look at the exhibitions. For instance, the page covering current exhbitions at the museum includes detail on an exhibition of Rembrandt art. The Rembrandt page includes a link to a "View" page in which an animated screen provides more information on and images of Rembrandt's artwork. Other options such as online tours and online resources provide the visitor with still more information on the museum, with both art images and text descrbing the art pieces. The large amount of content makes the website useful resource on art, although the large amount also means that some visitors way have trouble choosing what they want to see. Because there is so much content, visitors may not be able to decide what they really want. The themes of the site's design appear to be organization, categorization, and interconnectedness. The art content is divided into neat categories such as American art, British art, etc. so that users know what they are finding. Also, many of the links and web options are interconnected, linking the different parts of the site together. This type of organization is helpful to navigating the site. Overall, I think that the art gallery's website is very attractive and informative, and it should be useful to anyone who wants to learn more about the museum. |
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