ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, is a Chicago-based literary organization dedicated to bringing the best poetry to the largest possible audience. Guided by a National Organization for Research study on the presence of poetry in America, the Foundation determined that the web was a largely untapped medium for poetry and one of the best ways to reach new audiences.

Site Re-Design

In 2010-11, The Poetry Foundation collaborated with Tierra to completely re-design its website, archives, search/browsing capabilities and other functions of the Foundation's website. In the course of a year-long project which launched in early April, 2011, Tierra led and conducted all aspects of a project that:

• Created detailed content and design strategies for the new site
• Conducted user testing of design and functionality for a new search / browsing interface
• Delivered extensive information architecture and all visual design for the new site
• Incorporated Poetry Magazine's entire 100-year archive (through a partnership with JSTOR)
• Migrated and updated 5 years of content from Harriet, the Foundation's WordPress-powered blog and standard-bearer for news in the poetry community
• Rebuilt all underlying functionality and sections for the front-end site
• Integrated the new site into the custom-developed Tierra CMS application that powers all site content publishing functions

The project's goal was to create a much simplified interface for browsing and to enable a broader audience to access the extensive content made available by the Foundation.

Mobile Applications - iPhone, iPad, Android

Driven by a goal to reach a younger, tech-savvy audience, The Poetry Foundation partnered with us to design and develop an iPhone app that would act as a mobile database of poems. Search for your favorite poets, or browse the rich database of poems by subjects such as love or nature. Or give your phone a shake, and the slot-machine action matches emotions with subjects, revealing surprising juxtapositions like "guilt & family" or "doubt & youth". Read a review of POETRY in The New York Times. Since launching in the spring of 2010, the POETRY app has been downloaded over 180,000 times and has received recognition from the W3 Awards (Silver) and a forthcoming 'Color in Design' award from Print and How magazine. The app was also an Education category finalist in the 2011 Appy awards. In the spring of 2011, Tierra will be launching an upgraded version of the POETRY iPhone app as well as iPad and Android versions.

Content Management System

Tierra developed an open-source and easy-to-use custom CMS designed to meet the Poetry Foundation's specific publishing needs. The CMS includes tools for publishing poems, articles, audio and video, managing their vast database of poetry, importing content from Poetry magazine, and forward-scheduling site content.

Audio/Visual Discovery

Tierra created a new layout and user interface for the Audio & Podcasts and Video sections on PoetryFoundation.org that brought these materials to the forefront of the site. Poetry lovers can easily discover, listen to poems and watch shows and documentaries.

Learning Lab

Tierra worked with the Poetry Foundation to develop a learning area where “teachers, students, and learners of every age…can immerse themselves in poetry”. From poem guides and articles to glossary terms, Tierra helped the Poetry Foundation bring resources to those interested in exploring their inner poet.

DC Poetry Tour

Tierra put our flash skills to work to develop this fun and informative Poetry Tour for the Washington, DC metro area. Users can enjoy it from the comfort of home or download it to their mp3 players and follow along on a printable map as they explore the streets of Our Nation’s Capital. The project involved synchronizing audio components with visual elements and physical locations on a map to make an easy-to-follow tour. Tierra also created a behind-the-scenes tool that makes developing new walking tours faster and easier. Next stop, New York City?