UX of Louvre museum
This is the first article which is a part of Everyday UX series which explores the hidden user experiences in our day-to-day lives!
Introduction
This summer, I had the chance to visit the world’s most famous museum: the Louvre. It’s every art enthusiast’s dream — a mecca for art lovers. Home to works by Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Matisse, Monet, and Caravaggio, to name a few, this 231-year-old museum is truly massive.
To put its size into perspective, it’s said that if you spent just 30 seconds on each artwork, it would take roughly 100 days to see everything.
My experience is based on the single day I spent in this beautiful museum. While there’s much to appreciate, including the art and the building’s architecture, I want to share my thoughts on the user experience of being a tourist at the Louvre.
Visiting Paris for the first time with my family, I was excited to see this highly popular museum. Of course, I wasn’t alone — the Louvre receives about 15,000 visitors daily. Given its size, it was essential to be mindful of which exhibits we wanted to see most. Wayfinding and navigation were crucial to making this experience memorable.
Navigation
Considering the number of international tourists that visit the Louvre daily, all signage in the museum was written in English, French, and Mandarin, with image references to iconic monuments. All visitors received a detailed physical map of the museum. The museum consisted of three wings — Richelieu, Sully, and Denon — each with five floors.
Visitors could also scan a QR code to access a digital PDF version of the map. Additionally, audio tours were available on an old Nintendo 3DS device with an interactive map. I chose to navigate the old-school way using the physical map, while my sister and brother-in-law opted for the audio-guided tour. I also noticed many tourists being led by personal tour guides who communicated in various native languages such as Spanish or Chinese. Based on my initial observations, I identified the following tourists -
Types of tourists
- The hardcore ones — People who were actually interested in art (these would be art lovers and experts)
- Content creators — People who are focused on clicking photos of themselves with the art instead of appreciating it
- Explorers — People who were novice but genuinely curious to learn more about the history and culture
- Easy going — People who weren’t too keen on figuring out things on their own and preferred to be shown around by other tour guides
- Mavericks — People who didn’t need an audio or tour guide to tell them where to go, these people were more focused on exploring the museum in a more organic manner
Finding Mona
With 400 rooms and 35,000 artworks to explore, we had to focus on a handful of exhibits and galleries that interested us the most. We began our journey with the world’s most famous painting: the Mona Lisa. Finding it became our first challenge, turning our visit into a quest. The Mona Lisa was hidden away in the Denon wing, alongside other renowned works like Winged Victory of Samothrace, and Liberty Leading the People.
Despite the well-illustrated, colour-coded map with detailed instructions, I found the information overwhelming. Considering, I fall under the third category of users — Explorers, I had curiosity to see and learn but had limited knowledge. The cognitive load made it difficult to follow directions. My sister, using the audio tour, struggled with the Nintendo’s unintuitive interface. My tech-savvy brother-in-law, however, successfully navigated the interactive map and led us to the famous painting.
After fifteen minutes of wandering, we finally found the Mona Lisa. Its scale surprised us. Though fascinating, I felt somewhat underwhelmed, having seen Da Vinci’s other incredible works. I believe he deserves recognition beyond this single painting. Still, I was glad to see it before the crowds arrived.
Observing other visitors, I noticed many were merely glancing at the art rather than truly appreciating it. People often snapped photos of masterpieces and quickly moved on.
This made me realise how limited our attention spans can be when surrounded by overwhelming beauty. It’s as if our brains can’t process so much great art at once and need time to absorb the information.
Ultimately, due to fear of missing out and time constraints, we too ended up focusing on the famous artworks, regrettably missing many other exhibits.
What worked well
As one of the world’s premier museums, the Louvre impressively curates its user experience. As a UX designer, I particularly appreciated the following aspects:
Accessibility
The museum thoughtfully accommodates visitors with visual impairments and disabilities. It features well-designed ramp access, braille signage, and foldable chairs for elderly patrons. Additionally, the Louvre offers quiet spaces and play areas for families, as well as cafes and souvenir shops in various wings.
Signage
Despite the museum’s enormous scale, I found it relatively easy to navigate back to the main forum if needed. Clear signage for bathrooms and strategically placed staff were available to assist lost visitors, creating a safe and accessible environment for everyone.
Interactive installations
All paintings and sculptures had informative labels nearby, which I found enlightening. However, after exploring for three hours, one’s ability to absorb and retain information diminishes. Consequently, the most memorable artworks were the interactive ones for me which were as follows -
Menacing cupid
This small installation featured an engaging storytelling approach. It provided context for the artwork’s fame and included a tactile element, allowing visitors to touch a sample marble piece to experience its texture. The cupid’s story, narrated in first person, made the experience more immersive and memorable.
Greek mythology
As someone who grew up reading about Greek history, I was eager to see the pots and relics from the ancient Greek era. Amidst the various old artefacts, an interactive display caught my attention. It offered a brief, illustrative, and engaging history of the Greek gods while providing detailed information about each artifact. The UI design of these displays beautifully blended ancient Greek themes with a modern aesthetic, creating a contextually relevant and visually appealing experience.
Sarcophagus of the Spouses
This iconic Etruscan monument, crafted from terracotta in the 6th century BCE, piqued my curiosity about Etruscan culture — a subject I knew little about. Accompanying the tomb was a 3D installation that contextualized the artwork’s significance and highlighted its unique features, making the experience both informative and memorable.
What could be better
While I thoroughly enjoyed exploring this magnificent museum, I noticed some room for improvement from a UX design perspective. The audio guide’s user interface felt outdated and unintuitive. I believe the museum could enhance accessibility and ease of maintenance by developing an official mobile app for visitors. This approach would likely reduce maintenance costs and allow for more frequent updates.
A mobile app offers several advantages:
- Familiarity: Visitors can use their own devices, eliminating the learning curve associated with unfamiliar equipment.
- Real-time updates: The museum could easily inform visitors about closed exhibitions or renovations.
- Multilingual support: Instructions and information could be provided in visitors’ preferred languages.
While some third-party apps exist for the Louvre, an official app would greatly enhance the overall visitor experience. This app could offer daily, weekly, or monthly subscription options, catering to those planning repeat visits. It could provide personalised recommendations based on available exploration time and type of user, aiding in navigation and saving time for most people.
The reality is, despite our desire to experience museums in their most natural form, we heavily rely on our phones. Juggling between taking photos, listening to an audio guide on a separate device, and carrying a paper map for over three hours can become overwhelming.
In crowded museums, it’s often challenging to hear audio tours through low-quality earphones, and maintaining these devices likely incurs significant costs. As our phones evolve, losing features like audio jacks, we can’t connect our personal headphones or Bluetooth earphones to these audio guide tools, compromising our experience. Therefore, offering an audio tour app for personal phones would not only reduce maintenance costs but also allow visitors to use their own headphones or earphones more freely, enhancing their museum experience with the comfort of familiar devices. For those who prefer a traditional approach, the option to explore independently or with a tour guide would remain. Ultimately, this system would offer something for everyone, regardless of their preferred method of experiencing the museum.
Despite these minor suggestions, I wholeheartedly recommend visiting this awe-inspiring museum. I’m already looking forward to returning to the Louvre and exploring the parts I missed on my first visit!
