From Idea to Impact in 14 Days: How We Prototyped the Future of Art Curation

Research by:

Jahanvi Aghera

Prototyper Express

Aug 1, 2025

Ever bought something online, only to find it looks completely different in your home? It’s a common story. You see a stunning piece of art on a website, you hesitate, you wonder—will it fit the wall in the living room? Will the colors clash with the sofa? This moment of uncertainty is where great ideas get lost and sales evaporate. For artists trying to sell their work and for buyers trying to make a confident choice, this digital disconnect is a very real problem.  

At D-ARC Design, we thrive on solving these complex, user-centric challenges. We believe that the biggest risks in innovation shouldn’t be a barrier to progress. That’s why we developed Prototyper Express, a service designed to take your most ambitious ideas from a concept to a tangible, functional prototype in just two weeks. To showcase this power, we turned our attention inward and tackled the problem of online art sales with our internal R&D project: ‘Hang-It’.

Unpacking the Problem: The Great Wall of Uncertainty

The challenge with buying or selling art online is a lack of visualization. This single issue creates a cascade of problems for everyone involved: 

  • Uncertainty for Buyers: Customers are fraught with questions. Will the artwork fit the intended space? Does it match the existing decor? This doubt often leads to decision paralysis. 

  • Fewer Sales for Artists: For creators and galleries, it's incredibly difficult to convey the true scale and impact of a piece through a simple JPEG. Without effective previews, convincing potential buyers is an uphill battle. 

  • Time-Consuming Decisions: The traditional process of visiting multiple galleries, taking measurements, and dealing with the hassle of returns is a significant waste of time and energy for everyone.  

Recognizing this widespread friction in the online art market, we saw an opportunity to demonstrate our rapid prototyping capabilities. We initiated the ‘Hang-It’ project to prove how a complex, user-focused problem could be addressed with a functional, elegant solution in a compressed timeframe.

D-ARC Design's Rapid Response: A Two-Week Journey

Week 1: Research & "Vibe" Driven Ideation 

Our first week was a masterclass in speed and instinct. For ‘Hang-It’, we utilized an innovative approach we call "Vibe Coding"—a rapid prototyping method that prioritizes feel, flow, and creative intuition over rigid, time-consuming specifications.  

Instead of getting bogged down in documentation, we challenged ourselves to design the entire experience from scratch. We used natural language prompts to guide everything from screen layouts to user interactions, allowing us to build iteratively based on the immediate "vibe" of how the app should feel. This experiment in trusting our design instincts, supported by AI-driven creativity, allowed us to move with incredible speed.  

Our rapid research confirmed our core assumption: users needed to see art in their own space. This fundamental insight became our North Star, informing the core principles of ‘Hang-It’: empower users to upload their own art, preview it instantly in their environment using Augmented Reality (AR), and easily adjust its size and frame.

Week 2: From Concept to Functional App Prototype

With a clear vision, the second week was an intense sprint to bring ‘Hang-It’ to life. Our team seamlessly translated the concepts from Week 1 into a tangible, functional app prototype. This wasn’t just a set of static images; it was a working experience built to solve the core problem. 

We developed several key screens and features that formed the backbone of the prototype: 

  • Effortless Upload: An intuitive interface allows artists and collectors to upload artwork images and add essential details like title, artist, dimensions, and even price.  

  • The AR Preview: This is the heart of ‘Hang-It’. With a single tap, users can activate their camera, place a piece of art on their wall, and see exactly how it looks. They can freely move, drag, and resize the artwork to find the perfect spot, providing an accurate sense of scale and fit.  

  • A Personal Gallery: Every uploaded piece is saved to a personal gallery, creating a manageable, filterable collection for artists or a curated wishlist for buyers.  

  • Capture and Share: To make the experience truly useful, we built in the ability to save the AR view as a high-quality mockup and share it directly with clients or on social media. 

The Tangible Outcome: A Validated Prototype in 14 Days

In just two weeks, we had more than an idea; we had ‘Hang-It’, a functional mobile app prototype that directly addresses the uncertainty of online art purchases. The app was designed to bring confidence to buyers and provide a professional, powerful sales tool for artists and galleries.  

By creating a tangible prototype so quickly, we were able to validate our core concept instantly. The ‘Hang-It’ project proved our ability to bridge the gap between digital discovery and real-world presentation, building trust and simplifying a complex decision-making process.

Why Prototyper Express is Your Competitive Advantage

Our internal ‘Hang-It’ project is a testament to our process. We took a common frustration and, in only two weeks, produced a working digital solution that is intuitive, solves a clear problem, and opens up new business opportunities.  

This is the power we offer our clients through Prototyper Express. That same speed, user-centric design, and technical expertise are at your disposal. 

Are you facing a complex business problem that needs a rapid, tangible solution, whether it's streamlining a digital experience or optimizing a physical product? Don't let uncertainty slow you down. Discover how D-ARC Design's Prototyper Express can turn your challenges into validated prototypes in just two weeks, accelerating your path to innovation, just as we did with ‘Hang-It’.

Ready to build the future? Contact us today to learn more about Prototyper Express.

Research by: Jahanvi Aghera

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/jahanvi-aghera

Ever bought something online, only to find it looks completely different in your home? It’s a common story. You see a stunning piece of art on a website, you hesitate, you wonder—will it fit the wall in the living room? Will the colors clash with the sofa? This moment of uncertainty is where great ideas get lost and sales evaporate. For artists trying to sell their work and for buyers trying to make a confident choice, this digital disconnect is a very real problem.  

At D-ARC Design, we thrive on solving these complex, user-centric challenges. We believe that the biggest risks in innovation shouldn’t be a barrier to progress. That’s why we developed Prototyper Express, a service designed to take your most ambitious ideas from a concept to a tangible, functional prototype in just two weeks. To showcase this power, we turned our attention inward and tackled the problem of online art sales with our internal R&D project: ‘Hang-It’.

Unpacking the Problem: The Great Wall of Uncertainty

The challenge with buying or selling art online is a lack of visualization. This single issue creates a cascade of problems for everyone involved: 

  • Uncertainty for Buyers: Customers are fraught with questions. Will the artwork fit the intended space? Does it match the existing decor? This doubt often leads to decision paralysis. 

  • Fewer Sales for Artists: For creators and galleries, it's incredibly difficult to convey the true scale and impact of a piece through a simple JPEG. Without effective previews, convincing potential buyers is an uphill battle. 

  • Time-Consuming Decisions: The traditional process of visiting multiple galleries, taking measurements, and dealing with the hassle of returns is a significant waste of time and energy for everyone.  

Recognizing this widespread friction in the online art market, we saw an opportunity to demonstrate our rapid prototyping capabilities. We initiated the ‘Hang-It’ project to prove how a complex, user-focused problem could be addressed with a functional, elegant solution in a compressed timeframe.

D-ARC Design's Rapid Response: A Two-Week Journey

Week 1: Research & "Vibe" Driven Ideation 

Our first week was a masterclass in speed and instinct. For ‘Hang-It’, we utilized an innovative approach we call "Vibe Coding"—a rapid prototyping method that prioritizes feel, flow, and creative intuition over rigid, time-consuming specifications.  

Instead of getting bogged down in documentation, we challenged ourselves to design the entire experience from scratch. We used natural language prompts to guide everything from screen layouts to user interactions, allowing us to build iteratively based on the immediate "vibe" of how the app should feel. This experiment in trusting our design instincts, supported by AI-driven creativity, allowed us to move with incredible speed.  

Our rapid research confirmed our core assumption: users needed to see art in their own space. This fundamental insight became our North Star, informing the core principles of ‘Hang-It’: empower users to upload their own art, preview it instantly in their environment using Augmented Reality (AR), and easily adjust its size and frame.

Week 2: From Concept to Functional App Prototype

With a clear vision, the second week was an intense sprint to bring ‘Hang-It’ to life. Our team seamlessly translated the concepts from Week 1 into a tangible, functional app prototype. This wasn’t just a set of static images; it was a working experience built to solve the core problem. 

We developed several key screens and features that formed the backbone of the prototype: 

  • Effortless Upload: An intuitive interface allows artists and collectors to upload artwork images and add essential details like title, artist, dimensions, and even price.  

  • The AR Preview: This is the heart of ‘Hang-It’. With a single tap, users can activate their camera, place a piece of art on their wall, and see exactly how it looks. They can freely move, drag, and resize the artwork to find the perfect spot, providing an accurate sense of scale and fit.  

  • A Personal Gallery: Every uploaded piece is saved to a personal gallery, creating a manageable, filterable collection for artists or a curated wishlist for buyers.  

  • Capture and Share: To make the experience truly useful, we built in the ability to save the AR view as a high-quality mockup and share it directly with clients or on social media. 

The Tangible Outcome: A Validated Prototype in 14 Days

In just two weeks, we had more than an idea; we had ‘Hang-It’, a functional mobile app prototype that directly addresses the uncertainty of online art purchases. The app was designed to bring confidence to buyers and provide a professional, powerful sales tool for artists and galleries.  

By creating a tangible prototype so quickly, we were able to validate our core concept instantly. The ‘Hang-It’ project proved our ability to bridge the gap between digital discovery and real-world presentation, building trust and simplifying a complex decision-making process.

Why Prototyper Express is Your Competitive Advantage

Our internal ‘Hang-It’ project is a testament to our process. We took a common frustration and, in only two weeks, produced a working digital solution that is intuitive, solves a clear problem, and opens up new business opportunities.  

This is the power we offer our clients through Prototyper Express. That same speed, user-centric design, and technical expertise are at your disposal. 

Are you facing a complex business problem that needs a rapid, tangible solution, whether it's streamlining a digital experience or optimizing a physical product? Don't let uncertainty slow you down. Discover how D-ARC Design's Prototyper Express can turn your challenges into validated prototypes in just two weeks, accelerating your path to innovation, just as we did with ‘Hang-It’.

Ready to build the future? Contact us today to learn more about Prototyper Express.

Research by: Jahanvi Aghera

LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/in/jahanvi-aghera