Heather talks about the designing of the Teahouse, the WikiWomen's
Collaborative logo, and the gender gap.
https://blog.wikimedia.org/2012/11/02/designing-for-connection-on-wikipedia…
Designing for connection on Wikipedia: An interview with Heather Walls
<https://blog.wikimedia.org/2012/11/02/designing-for-connection-on-wikipedia-an-interview-with-heather-walls/>
Posted by Siko Bouterse <https://blog.wikimedia.org/author/siko/> on
November 2nd, 2012
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TH_palette.jpg>
Teahouse design palette
When Heather Walls <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Heatherawalls>
designed the Wikipedia Teahouse
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Teahouse>, she was inspired by
the name to create a space with "a sort of zen feeling" where new
editors could relax, have a cup of tea, and get help learning the ropes
from experienced Wikipedians. Her design for the Teahouse, which is full
of gentle colors and images of people and nature, aims to create a
"softer entry point to Wikipedia, where you can see there are other
humans, and they're the ones talking to you."
When she's asked about the project or about her work as a visual
designer, Walls often comes back to the theme of human connection. "The
Teahouse gives people a chance to see each other, to see that Wikipedia
is other human beings," she said. "I love watching the hosts give
patient and supportive answers to all kinds of questions, and how
thankful guests are in return."
In the eight months since it was launched on English Wikipedia, new and
experienced editors have come to enjoy the Teahouse's warm atmosphere.
"It's surprising how relaxing the site design is," said Teahouse host
Writ Keeper. "I'm not an artsy type...so I never would've thought that
site design would make such a difference, but it does."
Walls says what she likes best about all the projects that she works on
is the purpose and dedication of the people involved. "My hope is that
as many people as possible can feel ownership of this mission."
In 2011, Walls started contracting with the Wikimedia Foundation,
creating outreach materials for hackathons and recruitment, and soon
moved on to projects like Teahouse, Wikipedia mobile, a Funds
Dissemination Committee portal
<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/FDC_portal>, and a portal for new
editors
<http://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%88%D9%8A%D9%83%D9%8A%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A7:%D8%A8%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%83%D8%A9>
on Arabic Wikipedia. With a background in architecture and a degree from
Harvard Graduate School of design, she has experience designing both
real and virtual spaces. She's also an active Wikipedia editor in her
spare time, patrolling new pages and serving as a host in the Teahouse.
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WWC-02.png>
WikiWomen's Collaborative logo
The WikiWomen's Collaborative
<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WikiWomen%27s_Collaborative> logo--which
features an image of hands forming a "W" shape--is another one of
Walls's designs that focuses on people finding common ground. The
WikiWomen's Collaborative project supports women's participation in the
Wikimedia movement by celebrating inclusivity and diversity, and this
ideal brought some challenges to the design process. "We were definitely
going for not-pink," says Walls, "though this logo can be any color and
it doesn't change the recognition." The idea for the logo came from a
photo
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WikiWomen%27s_Lunch,_Wikimania_2012.jpg>
taken at the WikiWomen's lunch at Wikimania in 2012, where over 100
women from around the world gathered. "Looking through our hands creates
a sort of window we share," she said. "We do things with our hands,
everyone around the world, we have that in common. The WikiWomen's
Collaborative is about women everywhere contributing to the voice of the
world."
Addressing Wikipedia's gender gap is, at it's core, about widening
representation and incorporating more perspectives into the sum of human
knowledge. Walls recognizes the unique perspective that she brings to
her own design practice. "Every individual brings their experiences, and
as a woman I do have a different viewpoint. My view and experience, the
fact that I have learned to understand the importance of invitation,
that is in what I do now, even if a project is not specifically aimed at
women."
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:06_Heather_Walls_-_Wikimedia_Foundation_04.jpg>
Wikimedia Designer Heather Walls
Proving that a Wikimedian's work is never done, Walls just completed a
redesign of the Teahouse to make it even easier for guests to find the
help they need. "As we added features and explanations to the main pages
of the Teahouse over time, simplicity and some of the visibility of the
Teahouse organization was lost." Some editors were attached to her old
design and initially opposed the updated version, and Walls said she
also felt some nostalgia while rolling out the changes. Ultimately,
thanks to lots of community input, the original colors and Teahouse logo
were retained in the new design, because they play an important role in
the emotional connection users have with these pages on Wikipedia.
Come stop by for a cup of wiki-tea in the newly revamped Teahouse
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Teahouse> on English Wikipedia,
or visit the WikiWomen's Collaborative on Facebook
<http://www.facebook.com/WikiWomensCollaborative> to continue the
conversation. Heather Walls and other WikiWomen look forward to meeting
you there!
/Siko Bouterse, Head of Community Fellowships/
* Copyright notes: "TH palette.jpg"
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TH_palette.jpg> by Heather
Walls, under CC-BY-SA 2.5
<http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/>, from Wikimedia
Commons, "T06_Heather_Walls_-_Wikimedia_Foundation_04.jpg"
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:06_Heather_Walls_-_Wikimedia_Foundation_04.jpg>
by Guillaume Paumier, under CC-BY-3.0
<http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en>, from Wikimedia
Commons, "WWC-02.png"
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:WWC-02.png> by Heather
Walls, under CC-BY-3.0
<http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en>, from Wikimedia
Commons
Categories: Profiles
<https://blog.wikimedia.org/c/communications/profiles/>, WikiWomen
<https://blog.wikimedia.org/c/community/wikiwomen/>
--
*Sarah Stierch*
*/Museumist and open culture advocate/*
>Visit
sarahstierch.com
<http://sarahstierch.com><<