It wasn’t a long list at all. We knew that the navigation structure needed to accommodate more than 100 artists, so we really pushed ourselves to come up with a sensible and cohesive means for browsing so many names, which were unfamiliar to many users.

We began the design process by meeting with the Biennial curators and getting an in-depth understanding of the objectives and themes of this year’s exhibit. The curators had discovered subtle connections and currents that run between the artists and their work. In response, we suggested a dynamic interface that engages visitors to explore and reveal relationships, imparting a sense of context to the exhibition as a whole.

While many websites have a relatively limited number of sections to navigate, we were faced with the challenging task of creating a navigation scheme to address each of the 108 artists with complete equality, while also providing a digestible means of uncovering the connections that run between them. Our solution of browsing the artists visually gives visitors an immediate way to connect with the art. For a casual visitor who isn’t familiar with many of the names, this system offers the most accessible way to digest such a comprehensive exhibit.

It can be difficult to quantify the success of a website objectively. For sites that do not yield the direct and measurable results that an ecommerce or sweepstakes site might, we often look toward industry reviews and awards to gauge a project’s success. We have been humbled by the praise and recognition the site has received to date. The most exciting reviews, however, were reflected in this headline in Art Daily: “Whitney’s Traffic Quadruples with Biennial Site.”