Afterall
Afterall is a Research Centre of University of the Arts London.
When Afterall first approached us, we immediately understood the objective: to enhance and elevate their online reading experience by providing publishing tools that enable the swift and elegant creation of articles and meaningful content for years to come.
During the summer of ’23, we oversaw the launch of the content platform afterall.org, boasting over 1.000 items published and counting.
Services include: analysis – site architecture – art direction – digital design – ui/ux – technology – redirects & go-live
To enable the creation of different types of content, we designed and developed an extensive digital framework, reflecting the organisation’s aesthetic. This allows Afterall complete control over their pages, publications and articles. All components are tested thoroughly for usability, accessibility and performance to create new layouts without worries.
An exercise in publishing patterns
Together with team Afterall, we conducted an extensive workshop where we discussed publishing patterns, solidified data models, established priorities and expressed our aspirations.
From there, we were able to synthesise the ideal site architecture. Mr. Henry developed new methods for Afterall to publish and distribute content on their newly made platform. Separating these two procedures enabled a shift in their internal work processes.
Following our recent update, we’ve witnessed a substantial increase in user engagement (from 2m17s to 5m10s), faster loading times and more pageviews per session. With only 0.08g of CO2 per page visit, this website is cleaner than 92% of all sites tested.
We’ve also created a comprehensive wiki to get new editors up to speed in no time, allowing for easy adoption of their platform.
At the heart of our strategy lies a proven and sophisticated approach: the utilization of a component system, which brings forth a multitude of advantages. This includes an extensive library of interactive elements, rich media blocks, and diverse article teaser options, all achieved without requiring specialized expertise from their content team.
This results in consistent and very high Lighthouse metrics; an automated tool to enhance web page quality. It audits for performance, accessibility, best practices, SEO and more.
Afterall.org captivates a global online audience, with readership extending from the Americas to the far reaches of Asia. Their physical Afterall Journal publications can be found in bookshops, galleries and newsagents around the globe.
We are thrilled to have played a role in the creation of this online platform for Afterall, one that is cherished and appreciated by a diverse and enthusiastic audience.
“It has been incredibly rewarding to hear that the changes to our website have been well-received. We were impressed by Mr. Henry’s ability to capture our organisation’s values and needs, translating them into our digital presence.”
Chloe Ting, Associate Director Afterall
Photography by Safi Faye, Polly Braden, David Campany, Dalton Paula, Shigeo Anzaï and Afterall.