Final Site
Visualizing What a Body Can Do
Process
From Static to Dynamic
While we think of design as a way to create solutions for everyday human needs, Sara Hendren’s book provided me with a glimpse into how we should reconsider and rethink the way we design. I realize that design for accessibility should be the primary lens through which we view design.
Her book touches on the traditional ways we see disability and re-shapes and reframes how we see the built world. Her focus on the human body as being adaptable and defined by our surroundings shows how our built world becomes a language that unconsciously defines how society sees disability.
As humans, we have needs and problems that we face with our built world because the world we live in does not change or grow with the people in the society that currently loves it. When we think of a hammer, we think of it as a tool. But the reality is every tool, device, product, and design; we create the things that help us navigate the built world we live are in. A hammer is not just a tool but a tool that provides us with an ability that we as humans cannot do. So why do we consider particular objects as not concerning disability?
Initial Sketches
Iteration 1: Prototype
Iteration 1: Minimum Viable Product
Iteration 2: Prototype
Retrospective
Taking on the role of User Experience Developer (UXD)
Working on an informational website, though seemingly un-impactful, has fired my passion for accessibility design. This book has provided me with a new lens to see design through and I hope to push myself to use accessibility as a central scaffold to my design process.
Takeaway 1
Scaling down doesn’t mean less impressive
When starting on this website, I was ambitious in taking on the number of SVG images I was making and the number of animations I wanted to implement without any background. While the process forced me to see what was important, I am proud of how I could scale down my website while still capturing the essence of what I wanted to achieve.
Takeaway 2
Creating what I imagined is ideal, but sometimes only making what is necessary is just as impactful
Through this process, I reconciled both the dream of what I hoped this website could be with the skills I needed to learn and the time restraints. While I wish I scaled down earlier in the process, this process has helped me hone in the necessary design aspects to achieve a similar result.
