March 13th, 2018 • 3 min read
Datart is web application meant to make uninitiated young people learn about database in a playful and easy way, while combining notions to artworks. The project was carried out using the Agile Scrum project management methodology, and the Design Thinking process. I have worked closely with the UX/UI Designer to imagine the User Experience.
Centre Georges Pompidou
Ayoub Bourouag
Sylvain Capo-chichi
Ando Razafindrainibe
Nicolas Deschamps
6 months
Project manager/UX Designer
The concept of database is commonly seen as something quite complicated, cold, and too abstract, let alone for children who still encounter difficulties to project abstract ideas in their mind. It involves complex notions which makes people even ore reticent to learn database and IT in general, even for adults. Colors, emotions and imagination have no place in such a logical theme. There is a real interest in turning something very conceptional and unfamiliar, to something pleasant and appealing while helping them grasp the concept we want to teach.
It might not be obvious at first, but we do exactly what database do in our daily life. A child sorting his toys into boxes is basically doing classification, a classic database notion. From that, we simply used an artwork made of portraits from the Centre Pompidou, and let the player classify them in a clever way.
As we aimed young children, the mini-games had to be as intuitive as possible. Still putting his toys away, the child is grasping and moving them into boxes. We recreated that same movement with the drag and drop method. This interaction of grabbing something on screen, and moving it, felt as natural as in real life.
Colors are a powerful and simple way to play wth our emotions. The IT world is often associated with cold tones, such as blue, gray, or even green. We wanted to imagine our own creative atmosphere so as to entice positive vibes. We used the Pantone color of the year 2018: the Ultra Violet. It is an imaginative color that communicates originality, ingenuity, and visionary thinking. By relying on the emotional design principle, the player felt comfortable interacting with our games.
We tried to design a custom-made experience for the player. It was achieved by taking a greater care to details. The goal was to draw the user attention where the action was. The interaction was suggested by wiggling movements, either by clicking anywhere on the interface, or by hovering the element. We also helped the player by showing him tips when he was on the right way.
