Kate Norris Art
Client: Kate Norris – visual artist, Baltimore, MD
Scope: Website redesign and development, information architecture, content migration, email templates, ongoing site updates and support
Role: Design, UX, front-end implementation, ongoing maintenance
Platform: Squarespace (Migrated from WordPress → Squarespace 7.0; upgraded to Squarespace 7.1 in 2024)
Timeline: April 2022- February 2025 (ongoing support)
URL: katenorrisart.com
Context: Kate Norris is a Baltimore-based artist with a diverse body of work spanning anatomy studies, animals, and nature-based imagery. The existing WordPress site had grown difficult to manage and no longer reflected the clarity or cohesion of the work itself. The project required not only a visual refresh, but a thoughtful reorganization of content to support discovery, engagement, and sales.
The Challenge: The primary challenge was transforming a dense and unevenly structured archive into a focused, navigable portfolio—without oversimplifying the breadth of the work. The site needed to support both casual browsing and intentional viewing, while remaining easy for the artist to update over time.
The Solution: The website was redesigned and rebuilt on Squarespace, with a clear emphasis on structure, hierarchy, and usability. Content was streamlined and reorganized to foreground a curated selection of artwork, while preserving access to distinct bodies of work through inuitive categorization. The result was a site that balanced visual presence with practical navigation and long-term maintainability.
Key design decisions included
Curated presentation
Artwork was edited and grouped to emphasize quality and coherence rather than volume, allowing individual pieces to breathe.
Artwork categorization
Works were reorganized by preferred type (e.g., Anatomy, Animals & Nature), enabling visitors to explore specific interests without friction.
User-centered navigation
Page structure and flow were designed to guide visitors naturally toward viewing, learning more, and purchasing artwork.
Platform migration and longevity
Moving from WordPress to Squarespace simplified maintenance and empowered the artist to manage updates independently, with an upgrade to Squarespace 7.1 ensuring long-term platform stability.
Ongoing support
The site was designed as a living system, with continued updates, refinements, and assistance provided as the artist’s work and needs evolved.
What This Project Demonstrates
Designing artist portfolios with clarity and restraint
Balancing visual expression with usability and structure
Thoughtful content curation as a design strategy
Long-term collaboration and ongoing site stewardship
Building systems that support creative practice over time
