website | the silent treatment

[Narrative selection]

• “The Silent Treatment: Solitary Confinement’s Unlikely Origins” https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/silent-treatment/

[Mind maps]

[Mood boards]

My first mood board leans more towards the “confinement” side of solitary confinement, with overlapping boxes, text living tightly inside boxes, and more cramped elements. This mood board has more of a vintage feel, leaning into the 1800s style since this is the time period the article focuses on. Didot is a font that was developed in the 1800s, which is why I chose it. I would pull in black and white and maybe a beige color (for a worn look) and base patterns/other elements on prison uniforms of the time.

My second mood board takes a different approach to solitary confinement, focusing on the “solitary” aspect. Elements would live with distinct separation from each other with padding and margins. This would give more feelings of being alone and separated than just the cramped confined aspect. The typography and color palette take more of a modern approach to things, showing a connection between the past and present. I think keeping things monochromatic would add to a “timeless” aspect while emphasizing a feeling of isolation through a sterile vibe.

[Thumbnails]

[Identity Sketches]

Not totally settled on a name or concept for this identity — but I’m thinking of naming the website either “solum” (“only” in Latin), “solitary,” or “solitary confinement.” I definitely need to think more about this though.

[Persona]

[Style Tiles]

[Link to Protoype]

*You have to zoom out to like 25% to view my screen for some reason so keep that in mind.

Click here to view prototype project 1

[Questions for User Testing]

• Is the layout of information (especially type) working? Is it easy to follow?
• Are the thin boxes working overlapping the images? I want it to have the feeling of “being confined” to a space.

[Mockups}

Desktop

Tablet

Mobile

[final mockups]

https://cassreese.com/student/spring2024/crawley_paige/crawley_project1_final/