1. ● Unstructured collection
● Comments on structure & design, less on content
○ type classification: artist-, designer-, tech- portfolio, blog…
○ misc good/bad attributes
● Sources
○ my bookmarks
○ connections’ websites (don’t take it personally 😅)
○ this Medium post (thanks Tarunika)
Quick & dirty study
of personal websites
August 20, 2019
Thor Galle
21. ● art portfolio focus
● simplistic sitemap: projects, writing, about
+ creative full-page hero
with dreamy video backdrop
+ simple projects
− mobile unfriendly, big images
won’t fit even mid-size laptop
29. site of a modern Leonardo da Vinci
+ completely eccentric
➢ the tracker, custom date format,
“archive of everything”
➢ enormous content-wise
+ neo-noir design details, mood
➢ details
➢ fonts, shades, styled photography
− a maze to navigate
−
41. + directly readable content
➢ but just latest content
− unclear info-architecture
➢ APPS, APP-O-MAT ?
− no blog overview
− boring layout
https://loufranco.com/
theme
42. + succint & clear article titles
− messy & crammed visual overhead
− self inflicted screamy ad-banners
➢ the blue and red
https://davidwalsh.name/
focus: writing, selling services
43. − style mess-ups
➢ callout bad contrast
➢ navigation bad constrast
➢ line-height of titles, padding
− unclear custom tabs
http://arankhanna.com/work.html
focus: all-in-one portfolio
44. + Works for basic articles that are
linked by others
− endless scroll of items, no
structure
https://pawelgrzybek.com/
classic coder blog
writing focus?
46. Set your goals first there is no silver bullet design
Who is your audience? What do they want? What do you want?
Some examples:
For portfolio sites
● audience: recruiters, HR or your peers
● they want: to get an idea of your personality, what cool stuff you do, how you do it
● you want: to have fun making the site, sell yourself & show off your abilities
For blogs
● audience: anyone interested in your writing topic
● they want: to get insights, to learn something, to be moved, to follow you
● you want: to share your thoughts and observations, possibly sell your knowledge
47. Types of sites identified above & specific take-aways:
● writing-focussed blog → get people interested in reading, focus on content
● art project portfolio → creative visual design helps
● design portfolio → why, what & how did you design?
● science portfolio → show it & embed your research
● tech portfolio → document your apps: what and for whom?
● networking portfolio → why are you worth following?
48. General take-aways:
● Make some kind of intro to yourself
→ it humanizes you
● Document processes where relevant (design process, tech process)
→ provide learnings for audience + insight in how you work, displays openness
● Highlight your most valuable pieces of content
→ those are not always the most recent
● Combine inspirations & make it yours
→ What’s that quote again? Oh yes, “Good artists copy, great artists steal.”
49. Don’t
● Be boring
● Use unconventional navs / hierarchies that only you understand
(I’m guilty as well)
● Overcomplicate things (I’m guilty as well)
→ here Steve Jobs can go again
● Oversimplify things
→ too little structure is possible, especially with lots of content
● Use hover styling for functional elements (I’m guilty as well)
→ probably 50% + of your visitors are on mobile
● Use http. Try to use https.
→ browsers will make your visitors feel a bit less secure
