Gregory Withers

Project Manager

User Experience Designer

Hi there! I lead small teams of talented folks who solve big problems.

young man sitting on the floor in the sun, he is resting an arm on his knee in a relaxed way

Projects

rendering of a modern pavilion building at sunset. It has large windows, a slanted roof, a rooftop garden, and water features Pavilion - Spatial Design
poster showcasing some of the exhibits at The Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver, the building architecture is modern and stylish The Polygon Gallery - Interaction Desgin

Pavilion - Spatial Design

The Problem

The Pavilion was the final project for the course 233: Spatial Design, in the School of Interactive Arts and Technology at Simon Fraser University. This structure was designed to serve as a gathering site for ceremonies and/or lectures, holding a maximum of 40 guests. It was intended to be constructed in Holland Park, Surrey BC.

Ensuring a positive, aesthetically pleasing experience for observers and presenters was the main challenge of this project. My decision to position the front entryway and rear patio in-line accomplishes this because visitors can easily view the stage, the stage is framed in light from the large rear window, and visitor movement flows can easily move in and out of the building through the front and rear exits.

My Role

I worked with a team of 3 other designers. Together, we collaborated on the priciples of circulation, functionality, and aesthetics. I was responsible for encouraging communication, maintaining the group schedule, producing sketches, and 3D modelling using Rhino and Twinmotion.

rendering of a modern pavilion during the day time. A pathway through the surrounding water feature is highlighted along with its large windows and nearby vegetation
rendering of a modern pavilion at sunset. The rear stars, patio, and rooftop garden are highlighted
2D mockup of the pavilion visitor flow through the building. It is a square shape that allows travel around the main central room and entrace/exit from both the front and rear of the building

Limitations

Time was the main limiting factor in this project. It was slated to last 3 weeks from initial brief to completion. The busy end-of-term push to finish projects accross many classes compounded this constraint.

Human resources were also strained, as team members had to juggle responsibilites between multiple end-of-term projects.

Scope was perhaps the simplest constraint on this project. The project brief gave me a clear idea of the size, shape, textures, and landscape requirements for the building.

Excellent planning and use of resources allowed for extra time to be spent developing a reflecting pool and environmental details around the Pavilion. These added details garnered praise from the teaching team and peers.

rendering of a modern pavilion at midday. The rear pathway through the water feature is highlighted. The surrounding vegetation and environmental features flow seamlessly into the pathway allowing for easy access from visitors.
rendering of a modern pavilion at midday. The rear auxiliary pathways are highlighted, which carry visitors around the water features.
a low angle image of the rendering of a modern pavilion, this one captures the details of water's surface and warm reflected light of the sunset.

Solutions

The main challenge I encountered was to design a datum, a form that anchors all the elements of the design.

To do this, our team performed a site visit to to Holland Park. I sketched various layouts and took in the environment.

I initiated the center entrance/exit to accomodate the surrounding landscape and existing park pathways. Later, this was expanded it to include a walkway through the reflecting pool.

aerial view of the pavilion rendering, highlighting the concept of a datum or anchor structure, which is the main centre pathway of the pavilion
site visit photograph of Holland Park in Surrey BC showing the real-world location of the pavilion. A green field is shown with tall trees and apartment buildings in the distance.
site visit photograph of Holland Park in Surrey. A green field is shown with tall trees and apartment buildings in the distance. Designers are gathered in a small group to view the location and brainstorm ideas.
map view of the site visit in Holland Park, it donotes two potential locations for the pavilion to be built

Another challenge I overcame was enabling customizable textures. One of the main project requirements was to use panel styling to mimic de stijl architecture and modern infill type construction practices. Unfortunately, the model would only feature a single texture on all surfaces, which is not condusive to these styles.

To solve this, I separated every surface onto a unique layer within Rhino. Notice the image where I selected every window and moved it to the same layer, coloured blue - this allowed them all to be textured as glass later on, while retaining wood, metal, and stone textures elsewhere.

a basic rendering of the pavilion structure, it is white and featureless
a more advanced rendering of the pavilion structure, it is white but features some of the modern panels and architectural components of the final design
a wireframe model of the pavilion, its windows are highlighted in blue demonstrating how different layers were selected to alter their material appearing in later steps
a final rendering of the finished model, lit at dusk and showcasing the different textures of the panels, some are wood, some glass, some concrete
a final rendering of the finished model, let at dusk and showcasing the interior details and textures. Prominently displayed is a complex chandalier, elegant stairs, patio, and ceremony location, as well as wooden chairs for the audience members.

Lessons Learned

The project was successful, earning top marks of 90% and praise from the teaching team. Our peers were impressed by the level of detail we were able to achieve.

My ability to focus on minute technical details, adapt to new systems, and visualize movement flows have all improved. Learning to communicate clearly and thoughtfully with teammates helped me to implement our shared design goals in a practical way.

In the future I will seek to learn more about new programs/platforms ahead of time - perhaps by taking tutorial courses online - so less collaborative time is used debugging issues. In-person session time is an asset that I will strive to harness for the next project!

a final rendering of the pavilion rooftop featuring a goat. Bah!

The Polygon Gallery - Interaction Design

The Problem

The Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver participated with my project team for the course 333: Interaction Design, in the School of Interactive Arts and Technology at Simon Fraser University.

The main goal of the course was to to solve a problem for the Gallery. Through various design processes, interviews, and observations we identified the main problem to be the negative interaction that occurs between visitors and guest services workers. Because the Gallery does not align with a general conception of an art gallery, visitors are not aware they must check-in at the front desk and leave food/drink/bags downstairs.

My Role

I worked with a team of 4 other designers. Together, we collaborated with representatives from The Polygon.

I was responsible for team management and concept oversight. I encouraged communication between team members, led design meetings, distributed tasks, managed the work schedule, prepared presentations, conducted interviews, compiled/synthesized ethnographic data, sketched ideas, and performed graphic design.

An iteration on the information poster made to convey who the polygon is. This version features larger images which highlight the modern architecture of the building, the exhibits it holds, and the events that occur there.
Informational poster made to convey who the Polygon Gallery is to classmates and teaching staff. Large type highlights the polygon gallery name, with examples of their exhibits overlaid. Small text blocks highlight the gallery's focus on photography, its location in the shipyards area of north vancouver, and our key contacts in management.

Limitations

Scope was the most challenging limitation of this project. Coordinating between design team members, the teaching staff, and the Polygon representatives eventually led to a manageable focus area.

Human resources were also strained, as team members had to juggle responsibilites between multiple end-of-term projects, work commitments, and extra-curricular activities.

Time remained a constant limitation throughout the project, however my decision to limit the length of meetings helped to focus group activities on the design topics at hand. Consistent bi-weekly meeting scheduling also contributed to an efficient process through the course objectives and production of course deliverables. The busy end-of-term push to finish projects accross many classes compounded this constraint.

screenshot of internal team messages, where I have recapped the meeting, confirmed roles, set the time for the next meeting, and left prompting questions for our next conversation
persona poster example showcasing one of our most influential personas. It is a blue themed line drawing of the interior of the polygon gallery with an older man wearing a suit and glasses standing in the corner.
polygon poster showcasing the architecture and recent exhibitions

Solutions

The main challenge encountered was the group dynamic. With many passionate designers eager to share their opinions and debate concepts, our meetings were running overtime. Emotions were getting heated and the group morale was not ideal.

I addressed this issue by leading several conflict managment meetings. I encouraged team members to share their feelings and sought to mediate differences of opinion.

I consulted with the teaching team in search of feedback. This supported my position to encourage the team to express their opinions in an open dialogue, and settle disagreements over concept focus.

Several boundaries/ground rules were established: Meetings were not to exceed 2 hours, helping us focus on the immediate tasks at hand. Design decisions would be decided by popular vote, and solid definitions of team member roles were established.

screenshot of the team brainstorming process using Figma, there are numerous sticky notes organized into different design focus areas, doodles, sketches, and reference imagery scattered around.
journey framework example highlighting one of our personas time in the gallery.
journey framework example highlighting 2 parallel concepts

Another challenge I overcame was narrowing the scope of the project to a manageable level.

To do this, I led the team through brainstorming activities designed to help synthesize our ethnographic data, interview data, and input from The Polygon representatives.

I examined our previous work processes; collecting ethnographic data, building personas, building user journey maps, and our initial design areas of interest.

Using an IDEO technique, I led the group to hone our focus area by reframing our process around the front entryway and the competing constraints it embodies.

screenshot of a team activity I organized to analyze our past work, each poster is laid out with sections to note where it worked, where it didn't work, and any additional thoughts
screenshot of the team activity to reframe our design focus. This activity documented how our thinking had evolved over time, noted with sticky notes and text boxes.
screenshot of the reframing presentation focus, where I outlined each main section of the presentation in a logical fashion (noted in the green boxes), afterwards team members added critique to refine the presentation
screenshot of the IDEO reframing technique I used to help shift our thinking about the design focus of the project. Team members contributed by voting for sections they agreed with by dropping star and thumbs-up stickers.
screenshot of the final reframing activity where I organized the final preseentation in a logical manner - noted in the green boxes. Team members contributions are noting in the stickey notes, drawings, and comments.

Lessons Learned

I have put extraordinary effort into this course and this team. The Reframing Presentation benefitted from my ability to organize the team, synthesize contrasting opinions, settle disputes, and lead team analysis workshops. I was able to persuade team members to align with a new framing concept - ultimately leading to a strong presentation scoring 9/10.

The 2 Concepts reframing process benefitted from my leadership by recalibrating our focus after our ill-fated Participatory Workshop Presentation. I led the team through ideation sessions, designing the beginning of our 2 Concepts Presentation to summarize our progress for them. I believe focusing on the visual conveyance of Polygon Gallery knowledge and visitor flow was key to a strong presentation - one that garnered a high level of feedback from our peers.

My ability to reframe design concepts based on critique has improved. Learning to keep my emotions in check, not to argue, and take in contrasting opinions has benefitted the quality of our journey frameworks, which helped me to narrow the focus of our design interaction to the conflict between visitors and Polygon staff.

In the future, I will proactively guide conversations and seek critique in these ways sooner rather than later.

Overall, the project was successful. Our final concept proved to be strikingly simple - a ticketing station. We were praised for honing our research and design processes to arrive at such an elegant solution.

final prototype ticket station built by the team, it is a wooden structure in the shape of the polygon gallery with a cut-out section of the top face where tickets are presented to the visitor