Parker Pierce
Ux_ Art Station
Introduction
Freelance artists often work in unstable, makeshift environments—juggling both traditional and digital tools without a streamlined setup. Whether working from home, traveling, or setting up at conventions, the lack of a unified, portable workspace adds unnecessary stress, time loss, and creative disruption.
Problem
Freelance artists struggle with fragmented workflows and disorganized physical setups. Moving between projects, managing gear. Most tools focus on software, but would still love to be out and about—a portable command center that merges creative, administrative, and logistical functions into one cohesive experience would be a game changer.
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Goal
Create an all-in-one wandering artist station to allow artists to truly follow their muse and execute on it without restriction.
Core Features
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Modular compartments to allow the modification and load as needed
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Work desk that is easy to fold, unfold, and secure to the ground.
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Separate of Traditional supplies and Digital
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Lights for dark settings + battery or cord
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Comfy straps and gear to secure and move load, with padding to prevent fall damage.
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Traditional and Digital specific modules like Easel and computer screen + Drawing Tablet
Expected Outcome
This hub will allow traditional and Digital artists to easily pick and move their workstations, and be able do their work anywhere comfortably.
Research Data
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Survey Questions: https://forms.gle/B7jpCgWH1PUTtpDw9
Goals of The Survey were to confirm/update the experiences I’ve had as a freelancer to get a more confirmed sense of what an average freelance artist wants out of their commission workflow. Information around time usage, organization, what an artist would want or expect.
Q1:"What do you currently use when creating art away from home or the studio?"
Why: Ranking the most importent mediums of making art to address based funtionality on the number of users.
Q2: " How often do you make art on the go? "
Why: frequency may dictate how much room or how many modular units of space aim for.
Q3: "What are your biggest challenges when working in a mobile setup? "
Why: again rabking importance of priorities for addressing needs and MVP
Q4: "Which features in this travel art station design appeal to you most? "
Why: Instead of just asking what is the issue, asking what they would like, as a target beyond the MVP
Q5: "Is there anything missing that you'd want included? "
Why: A catch all feedback option for further insight.
Q6: " How important is weight and portability in your art setup? (1-Not Important, 5- Very) "
Why: get a feel for the size tolerance of the average artist in the go.
Q7: "What materials do you typically use when creating art on the go? "
Why:to guide the space and design of the carrying cases.
Q8: "Would you prefer a modular (customizable compartments) or fixed (pre-set layout) setup? "
Why: Should the iten be closed design or a series of units for customizable
Q9: "How much workspace do you usually need when working away from your main setup? "
Why: carrying is one side of the coin, but making sure the size matches the space is important.
Q10: "Would you be interested in buying something like this if it were available? "
Why: wouldnt want to dump resources into developing a solution no one is ihterested in.
Q11: "What would your price range be if you are interested in something like this?"
Why: determents what were working with as far as material cost and profitable are concerned.
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Survey Insights:
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There isn't one big shared shared challenges when working in a mobile setup
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How much workspace needed to do work would be considered medium, a small pack isn't a desired setup
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Storage compartments are the number 1 feature that appeals to users
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MVP Must-Haves
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Portable backpack type set up.
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Block containers with storage separators inside.
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Digital / Traditional Altered set ups.
Wolf Fox
Molly Weather
Wolf Fox - the alternate scene artist
A nerd from the Furry scene who does commissions on the side, working on a Chemist Degree.
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Molly Weathers - the Social Butterfly
On track towards her BA, trying to figure out who she is and networking with all sorts of folk.
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​Billy Miller - the fantasy fan
Your typical LOTR/GoT/DarkSouls fanatic who aspire to publish his own art and storys.
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Sue Travalot - the nomadic worker
Taking on odd jobs and seeing the world, Sue likes to use art to remember her adventures.​
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These Persons are designed to catch a good range of art communitys as a whole, (and an excuse to work on some portraits). As a professional artist, I have been or worked alongside versions of these characters. Every piece of wood has to be treated different for a woodworker, but every "type" of wood shares characteristics with it's "species of tree" (paraphrasing from Jocko Willink).
Billy Miller
Sue Travaloy
Flows
From beginning of a location to the end and set up, both in a Traditional and Digital workflow.
information architecture
Pics; the container set ups, how its organized, drawn
Sketch Prototype drawings:
[Prototype Model]
Left side is Traditional set,
Right side is Digital
[High Res Model]
Conclusion
The Wandering Artist Station reimagines the creative workflow for today’s hybrid artist—blending portability, comfort, and versatility into a single, cohesive system. By integrating modular storage, adaptable work surfaces, and thoughtful separation of traditional and digital tools, this setup empowers artists to seamlessly transition between environments and mediums. Whether sketching in a forest or animating at a cafe, artists gain the freedom to create without the usual friction of setup, gear management, or workspace limitations. In short, this isn't just a tool—it's a mobile ecosystem designed to let creativity roam untethered.