Myself and three other designers were tasked with exploring a future-oriented design of a hypothetical trail that connects Fair Park, Deep Ellum, and the Arts District that aims to foster community engagement and cultural exchange. Our clients was the Deep Ellum Foundation who operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation managing public and private funds within the community to advance the interests of the Deep Ellum neighborhood as a whole and achieve a sustainable growth trajectory for the district now and into the future.
The Problem.
"How Might We Design a Cultural Trail in Dallas?"
Tanner Williams I Kenedy Kundysek I Aline Zuniga I Dubzeey Wu
The Process.
Define
Understand
Imagine
Refine
Make
Test
Tell
Define
Define
In order to first define our launching pad, we needed to seek out answers to questions like:
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What is the current vision for the trail? or is there one?
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How are the other districts collaborating on this trial?
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What does a "cultural trail" even mean?
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What is the general scope of what we could or could not do?
To answer some of these questions, we dug deep into secondary research as well as each districts strategic plans to understand how each entity was approaching the idea of a cultural trail.
Understand
Understand
This phase is where we continued to define terms within our guiding questions and deploy customized design research methods in order to answer our guiding questions, understand the problem we are designing for, and accurately account for the audience we are designing for.
Research Methods
Observation
10 hours
Interviews
8 Interviews
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Alyssa Arnold; Director of Strategic Initiatives, Fair Park First
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Glenn Ayars: Cultural Programs Manager, City of Dallas Office of Arts & Culture
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Justin Childress, Switch: MADI Instructor
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J. Damany Daniel: Chief Imaginator, The Event Nerd; Deep Ellum Foundation, Board Member
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Will Evans, Executive Director, Deep Vellum; Deep Ellum Foundation Narrative
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Stephanie Keller Hudiburg, Executive Director, Deep Ellum Foundation
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Lily Weiss, Executive Director, Dallas Arts District
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Tania White, Former Assistant Director of Research & Innovation, Corgan
Visual and Color Audit
Six Hours over Two Days
The visual and color audit consisted of an in-depth visual observation exercise in which our design team spent more than six hours over two days walking through each of the three cultural districts (Deep Ellum, Dallas Arts District, and Fair Park). We documented colors, graphics, typography, and overall look and feel to help us identify the recurring visual themes, commonly used colors, and imagery. We also analyzed the logos and visual identity of similar civic and cultural organizations or initiatives from across the country such as the Indianapolis Cultural Trail and Atlanta BeltLine..
Over multiple days, we spent more than 10 hours visiting each district; Fair Park, Deep Ellum and the Arts District. We spent the bulk of our time walking the proposed trail route per the Deep Ellum Foundation's strategic plan.
Refine
Refine
This stage is where we refined our guiding questions by synthesizing all of the qualitative data we had gathered through our research methods. This is what we learned:
We began to realize that the districts were not only separated physically, but they were each very different in atmosphere. We began to discuss the opportunity the Dallas Cultural Trail presented to establish itself as the entity that might better connect these three cultural districts through a common story.
We had also learned that the desire is for the Dallas Cultural Trail to be a walkable trail.
Each district had a unique story and historical past that was important to the community that the stories were told well.
Imagine
Imagine
This stage houses a specific space and time for brainstorming about what could take shape to help the project that accounts for all previously gathered information and evidence. This is where our team started to think about potential solutions that are rooted in evidence and supported by our context gathering.
"How Might We Design a Cultural Trail in Dallas?"
A Brand Elaborative?
By focusing on developing the story and personality the Dallas Cultural Trail could transition from an idea to something more tangible that the three districts could build upon. We believed having a brand elaborative would contribute to the future of the trail by:
A shared visual across the three districts
A shared language across the three districts
Living brand materials that could be reconized and providing a foundation for its supporters to build upon.
Make
Make
Test
Test
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By testing what we make and not just making it, we are able to learn and iterate on the prototype before we give a final deliverable. This phase can be the most nerve-wracking and yet the most rewarding. Our goal with this phase was not to prove that our design worked, but rather to see what we can learn from what we put into the world.
Test #1: Card Sort
After our design team had established some preliminary brand cornerstones through our secondary research and expert interviews, we used a card sort to test whether people felt these brand cornerstones might align with a prospective audience’s idea of a Dallas Cultural Trail.
We considered our target audience to be a “local tourist.”On a Sunday afternoon, we spent two hours engaging with nearly 30 participants to understand what brand cornerstones this group valued most.
This exercise affirmed the direction our design team was heading and we solidified three primary brand cornerstones:
Historic
Authentic
Vibrant
Test #2 Logo Survey
We knew that with any good brand, a logo is extremely important. We synthesized all of our research looking for ideas. Informed by our Color and Visual Audit, one major visual theme surfaced to the top: a mosaic.
A mosaic visually represented the vision of the Dallas Cultural Trail – taking parts of a story and create a whole, more complete story.
We embraced the vibrant colors we had documented by directly selecting colors from the photos we took ourselves. We also embraced the pattern of three, using three shapes and three colors to represent the three cultural districts.
We deployed a survey with four logos to choose from via google form. We received 87 responses which then informed our visual direction.
Applying the Brand Identity
Our team created a brand elaborative that the Dallas Cultural trail could use to better communicate it’s unique and distinct vision of the trail, ultimately helping bring the physical manifestation of the trail to life. A clear and comprehensive brand gives the Dallas Cultural Trail its own presence and voice that lives independent of the three cultural districts. A Dallas Cultural Trail brand makes the trail tangible by using a specific language and visual identity, providing a clearer understanding of what the trail could be to stakeholders and future visitors alike.
