Haydee Alonso
Personal Portfolio Mobile-First Website
A mobile-first portfolio created for Haydee Alonso, contemporary artist and Adjunct Faculty in Chicano Studies at UTEP, designed to mirror her academic and artistic exploration of identity, fluid borders, and embodied storytelling through on-the-go digital interaction.
Client
Haydee Alonso
Deliverables
Website · Branding · UX Motion Designer
Role
Creative Director
CHALLENGE
Haydee Alonso, a multidisciplinary artist exploring the tension and beauty of border life, needed an online presence that would reflect her unique aesthetic and be accessible during a live exhibition in Mexico City. She had no previous digital visibility and requested a mobile-first website optimized for gallery visitors on the go.
SOLUTION
Custom motion graphics were created for each featured work to align with its tone and materiality.
Each of the six featured projects has its own dedicated, custom-designed detail page.
The site was developed mobile-first, ensuring clarity and immediacy for gallery visitors using smartphones.
On desktop, a dialogue box invites users to resize their browser to preview the intended mobile experience — a small touch that respects the site’s purpose while maintaining usability.
KEY UX FEATURE
The stacked-scroll interaction reduced perceived scroll length while boosting engagement. This creative UX decision made the site feel different from traditional mobile portfolios — smooth, playful, and efficient.
APPROACH
We began with competitive research across contemporary artist portfolios. A common issue was excessive scroll on mobile, especially when featuring multiple projects. To address this, we developed a scroll interaction using stacked sticky containers: cards that overlay each other vertically, revealing only the title of each piece. This created engagement without overwhelming the user, allowing six featured projects to feel light and interactive.
The visual identity was shaped around the soft pastel colors and organic forms present in Haydee’s physical work. To capture this essence digitally, we designed a 3D fluid blob element for the hero section; a symbolic fusion of all her works into a single animated form.
IMPACT
The website received excellent feedback from both the client and gallery visitors. Users noted that it didn’t feel like a “shrunk-down” desktop site, but rather a truly native mobile experience. Analytics later revealed significant desktop traffic as well, leading to the implementation of the dialog prompt to guide desktop users toward an optimal preview or mobile visit.
This project blended branding, motion, and UX to create an experience as fluid and border-defying as the artist’s work.