The V&A’s collection tells countless stories, from the revolutionary artistry of David Bowie, to the intricate craftsmanship of medieval textiles. Our From the Collections pages have served as gateways to these narratives, offering curated explorations of key figures, themes, and movements that define our collection.
Now, as we prepare for the exciting launch of the David Bowie Centre in September 2025, we’ve taking this opportunity to completely reimagine how these stories are told online.
The refresh of our 80+ From the Collections pages marks an exciting evolution in how we share the stories behind the V&A’s collection with our audiences. While our current From the Collections pages perform relatively well as key landing pages into the collection, we needed to create a design that matched the richness of content – articles, merchandise, events, and collection objects – that currently existed in silos. A visitor interested in Mary Quant might discover objects but miss a great product in our shop or a related exhibition that would deepen their understanding.
What we have changed
Our focus areas include restructuring the template to better support Engage, Visit, and Buy modes whilst supporting onward journeys and updating components to align with the redesigned Collections Landing Page for a more joined-up experience.
To achieve these goals, the new designs feature:
- Enhanced landing page experience: New header design with stronger visual impact and clearer information hierarchy, matching the collections landing page
- Better object display: Replaced static grid with horizontal scroll carousel for easier browsing
- Updated components: Replaced featured block with new articles carousel component giving editors more control and promoting more stories
- New shop carousel: This showcases specific products in a new UI that supports more links to the shop
- Increased promo flexibility: Template now supports multiple promos to allow for more user pathways
In order to deliver our full designs, we are phasing the releases over the next few weeks. We have just deployed release 1, focused on creating stronger visual impact and more compelling user experience as the foundation. The second release will feature our new shop carousel, and the third will allow for multi-promo management and new UI across our promos.
Looking ahead
This refresh represents more than a visual update, it’s a fundamental rethinking of how we connect people with the V&A’s collection. By creating stronger pathways between discovery and engagement, we’re aiming to improving user experience, supporting broader goals of making our collection more accessible and our institution more sustainable.
Let us know what you think! Reach out to us at digital_media_products@vam.ac.uk
It’s fascinating to see how the V&A is transforming its From the Collections pages to offer a more immersive experience for visitors. The idea of integrating articles, merchandise, and events to enrich the narrative is brilliant. This evolution aligns perfectly with creating a holistic exploration of art and history. Speaking of exploration, have you checked out the interactive storytelling in Monkey Mart.