The Art World and the World Wide Web

and it turns blue; roll over any of the gray categories and they
turn blue too. The effect is almost tactile.
Prince has opted to organize his website into twelve content
categories, which serve as the site’s main navigation menu:
Photographs, Paintings, Drawings, Exhibitions & Installations,
Untitled Originals, Sculptures, Publications, Limited Editions,
Own Collection, Writings, Biography, and Contact & News.
Click on “Photographs” and you are taken to a section of the
site devoted primarily to Prince’s photographic images. A menu
of subsections, arranged thematically, appears on the left side
of the screen. The site allows him to add new subsections (or
subtract existing ones) as the need arises. From a design
perspective, it’s a beautifully simple and clean interface, which
allows the artwork to occupy center stage without distractions.
Click on “Cowboys,” for instance, and you are taken to a page
of thumbnail images representing each of the pieces in this
category of work. Click on a thumbnail, and you are taken to a
gallery where each of the pieces in this category of work is
displayed, one at a time, in a spare viewing pane that fills the
computer screen. Each piece of art is clearly identified and
dated. You can scroll back and forth through this gallery using
the generously-sized left and right navigation arrows, or jump
back to the subcategory page with a single click. iPad users will
find the arrows ideal for navigating with their thumbs. No
matter which page you are viewing in the website, the home page
menu is always right there at the top of the page, making for
easy, intuitive navigation.
As you browse through the various categories from the main
menu, you will find the same intelligent design framework with
subsections consistently placed and clearly displayed on every
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