CicLAvia: Documenting Stories

Project Description

In Fall 2022, CicLAvia partnered with SMC IxD for a design challenge. Our team was asked to view the project through the eyes of documentation and to come up with strategies that allow CicLAvia to document its growth over time. We attended the “Heart of LA”, October 9th event and South LA, December 4th event to gather qualitative data on how CicLAvia impacts people and communities. We constructed a graffiti wall during the October 9th event to gather insights on how people generally felt and sought out people who lived in South LA during the December 4th event to gather insights on how CicLAvia impacts their community. We learned that CicLAvia strengthens the feeling of connectedness, cleans the streets of communities before events, improves restaurant sales, decreases crime, and makes people feel safe in communities that are generally avoided. We created a video with the most insightful quotes and interviews from both events, as a way for CicLAvia to market how they improve and benefit the communities that host their events. To view our video, please click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueBN0GEyLl8

Problem

The CicLAvia team currently has limited ways to collect demographic data and results. How might we measure design impact, either quantitatively, qualitatively, or both? In addition, event day documentation/storytelling can often be limited.

Insights

CicLAvia is a public space where art and culture can be amplified. The success of events can be determined by measuring sense of belonging, happiness levels, and diversity. Data will resonate when shared through stories and lived experiences. Additionally, graffiti art resonates with LA culture. CicLAvia can collect qualitative data on its community through artistic activities and understand what they care about most. Event goers want to promote their local community’s groups.

Solutions

We devised a graffiti wall for event goers to participate in to get unique stories representing the real CicLAvia, and interviewed neighborhood residents about how CicLAvia improves their communities. We used video footage from both events to create an emotional mini documentary that CicLAvia can use for marketing and outreach purposes.