The Vilcek Foundation relaunched our website in January 2020 with a new design custom-made to suit the foundation’s growing needs. The new look reflected several years’ research and work by the foundation’s digital and communication teams. Launched with support from Forum One, the new site design has been honored by four notable industry awards programs, including:
- The 2021 VEGA Digital Awards
- The 2020 WebAwards
- The w3 Awards
- The Communicator Awards
“As we came to the 20-year anniversary of our organization’s establishment, it was important to us to redesign and restructure our website to clearly articulate our foundation’s work and values, and that aligned with best practices for design and accessibility,” said Vilcek Foundation Chairman and CEO Jan Vilcek. “In the two decades since the foundation’s inception, our work has expanded through new prizes, programs, events and exhibitions, and creative projects. Our website needed to grow to fit these new needs.”
Vilcek Foundation Director of Digital Brian Cavanaugh led the website redesign project. “It was important that our strategic approach be driven by our mission, goals, and values: to showcase the scope of our foundation’s work with forward-thinking creative direction and paralleled technology.” said Cavanaugh.
In 2018, Cavanaugh commissioned Voice + Code to conduct User Experience (UX) research for the foundation’s site to identify core audience needs, behaviors, and preferences to inform the redesign process. “The strategic recommendations Voice + Code provided were crucial,” said Cavanaugh. “They enabled us to better understand our audience, and how we could design our site and information architecture to support them.”
Bolstered with the UX research data, Cavanaugh led the foundation’s digital and communications teams to redraft content for the new site. The foundation partnered with design firm Pentagram to create the visual elements of the site, and with Forum One to bring these elements to life in the online space, launching the site on January 31, 2020.
“The current design showcases the diversity of our foundation’s projects and programs in the online space—making our work and our mission accessible to people across the globe,” said foundation President Rick Kinsel. “The recognition of our new site design by industry experts is a testament to the quality of our work in the digital space, and to the value of our foundation’s communications in furthering our goals and mission. These achievements set a benchmark for our work moving forward, which our digital and communications teams will strive to uphold.”
Learn more about the specific awards:
2021 VEGA Digital Awards
Bestowed by the International Awards Associate (IAA), the VEGA Digital Awards acknowledge outstanding performance, talent, and effort of the best digital and creative professionals around the world. The Vilcek Foundation website received the Canopus award for its “responsive, accessible digital experience that tells compelling and engaging impact stories.”
2020 WebAwards – The Web Marketing Association (WMA)
Founded in 1997, the WMA is a nonprofit established to set standards for internet marketing and web development.
The Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts (AIVA) is a membership-based organization committed to embracing progress and celebrating the evolution of traditional and digital media. The Vilcek Foundation website earned a w3 Gold Award from AIVA for creativity, usability, navigation, functionality, visual design, and ease of use.
2021 Award of Excellence for a Website in the Arts
For its efficacy and impact, the Vilcek Foundation website is the recipient of a 2021 Award of Excellence for a Website in the Arts. The Communicator Awards (led by AIVA) is the leading international awards program recognizing excellence in communication across a spectrum of industries, championing effective and meaningful work.
