Nuit Blanche

Nuit Blanche Toronto

VISUAL IDENTITY

UX/UI

A proposed visual identity and experience of Nuit Blanche, Toronto’s annual night-time arts event.

My Responsibilities

Visual identity, user research, UX/UI design, visual design

Timeline

12 weeks

Context

Over a million visitors attend Nuit Blanche annually - yet online forums are filled with negative reviews.

Nuit Blanche is a free night-time arts festival with multimedia art installations, performances, and other activities. Taking place annually across Toronto, the familiar city is transformed from 7PM to 7AM.

Each year, visitors turn to the internet to express their disappointment with the event. I decided to explore how what changes to the physical and digital experience could satisfy visitors' needs.

Challenge

How can we make the Nuit Blanche experience more engaging and accessible?

User Research

The visitor experience every year is mixed.

Over the years, some comments stand out as long lasting issues that seem to go unresolved.

Visualizing the user journey to identify user needs.

While addressing these issues, I created Vincent and Georgia and how they experience the event.

What are key user needs?

Users need clear instructions appropriate for the event environment

Provided navigation tools currently don’t account for the lack of lighting and crowds. This makes it difficult for visitors to effectively use the large printed maps and unlit signage.

Users need a tool to efficiently guide them at and prior to the event

Inconsistent details between the existing website, maps, and other signage results in frustrating attempts to locate projects.

Users need to feel more engaged with the art

Visitors feel disappointed with the lack of engagement with the art and art community due to crowding.

Development

Addressing user needs through digital and physical functions and features.

Mapping out the user flow.

I connected the features to form a functioning website that addresses the needs of both user personas.

New insights from conducting usability and A/B testing.

I sat down with 3 participants to test the usability of the website, making improvements to visual accessibility and overall ease of navigation.

Exact locations of projects within buildings were unclear.

Added circular visual indicators the exact location or building entrance to improve clarity.

Lack of CTA on homepage made it difficult for users to decide what to start with.

Improved hierarchy of buttons through colour and location.

Greater preference towards seeing project images without colour stylization.

Included project images as the original on project pages, but kept stylized images during browse. Also decreased contrast between colours for improved visual accessibility.

Final Design

A refreshed Nuit Blanche experience

View the prototype

Browse through art projects and sessions to plan your visit.

Users can filter through art projects and sessions with relevant details to determine what they want to see. The website plots a suggested walking route with their bookmarked projects.

Engage with the community and art more closely through sessions.

The website leads users to community-run sessions like artist talks, workshops, and guided tours, directly connecting them to the art community.

Navigate the event through visually exciting physical wayfinding signage.

Lamppost signs, navigation blocks, and interactive subway billboards guide visitors to the art projects across the city and set the tone.

Takeaways

I better understand the value of going through the experiences of users first hand.

My visit to Nuit Blanche helped me gain a better understanding of visitor needs. It showed me the importance of user testing not just digitally but physically.