I started with the painting
My starting point was to give the paintings room: their colour, scale and individual rhythm. Rolandas’s works have different proportions and characters, so a uniform image crop or a conventional product catalogue would not have served them well. The website needed to support quiet looking, closer inspection and discovery of the stories behind the work.
The design developed through experiments with different layouts. For the homepage, we chose a composition pairing text with film. For the inner pages, I established a shared system of typography, spacing, colour and movement, then built distinct layouts for paintings, events and stories about the spaces around the work.
Built around Rolandas’s work
01
A gallery background you can choose
White, charcoal and forest backgrounds let visitors encounter the same painting in different surroundings. The choice follows them through the site and into the image viewer, keeping the experience consistent as they explore.
02
Room for proportions and detail
Portrait, landscape and multi-panel paintings retain their proportions. On each painting page, visitors can open a larger view and, on desktop, switch on a subtle magnifying lens to inspect the part of the canvas that catches their eye.
03
Film as part of the story
Film offers a first glimpse of the artist’s surroundings before visitors begin to read. On the About page, text and moving images alternate to give the story a gentle rhythm. I wanted movement to help people get to know Rolandas and his practice, while leaving the paintings room for quiet attention.
04
One archive, two ways to explore
Each painting has a place for its story, photographs and details that help visitors imagine seeing it in person. The portfolio follows Rolandas’s work through the years, while the selection of available paintings invites people to find a work they would like to live with.
05
Connections between art, events and spaces
The events section brings together upcoming encounters, a calendar and an archive. Paintings That Found a Home has its own narrative layout, with meaningful excerpts, photographic sequences and related paintings. Visitors can move from the atmosphere of a room to the individual work within it.
06
Lithuanian and English, with an individual voice
Visitors can discover Rolandas’s work in Lithuanian and English. In both languages, the intention is to keep his thoughts personal and preserve the mood of each story. This opens a conversation with people in Lithuania and further afield.
Built for the work behind the scenes
I wanted the website to grow alongside Rolandas’s practice. Painting stories can be expanded, new photographs shared and upcoming gatherings introduced. When a work catches someone’s attention, they can begin a conversation with the artist directly from its page.
An early idea, a few notes or photographs from different stages of a painting can be saved as the work develops. These small fragments of a studio diary can later become part of the painting’s story. Rolandas chooses which moments and thoughts he wishes to share.
Small details shape the experience
I paid close attention to how the website feels to explore: the space around each painting, the ease of reading and the quiet transition from one story to the next. On a large screen or a phone, the aim is the same closeness to the work and the freedom to look at your own pace.
What makes this website distinctive is how its parts work together: film introduces the artist, a change of background alters the experience of colour, details invite a closer look, and stories connect the paintings with people and spaces. I shaped each choice around Rolandas’s paintings so that the website would feel like a natural extension of his world.
Working on your own project
You can find more about my approach to website design and development at Advanced Web Designer.