Jongo Museum
A virtual space for Afro-Brazilian
memory and legacy
The Challenge
In 2024, we were invited by Instituto Floresta to create the website for the Jongo Museum — a fully online museum dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Jongo, an African-origin dance practiced by quilombola communities and recognized as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Brazil.
Our challenge was to design a digital environment that was accessible, functional, and welcoming, capable of bringing together various types of historical and audiovisual content while also giving visibility to the communities that keep this tradition alive.
Strategy and Approach
Content immersion and structuring
We began with a deep immersion into the world of Jongo and the mission of Instituto Floresta. From this foundation, we designed a clear and scalable information architecture, organized into the following key sections:
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History and origins of Jongo
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Multimedia archive with videos, photos, audio, and historical documents
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Interactive map showing the location of practicing communities
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Dedicated pages for each community
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News section with project updates
User Experience and Visual Design
Our UX approach was centered on inclusion and ease of navigation, balancing rich content with a lightweight and fluid structure. The experience was designed to be accessible for the general public as well as researchers, educators, and members of traditional communities.
The visual design is elegant, with strong contrast between light and dark areas, enhancing the beauty of the images and videos. We aimed to represent the ancestry and symbolic strength of Jongo graphically, without resorting to visual clichés.
WordPress Development
We chose WordPress for its flexibility, content management ease, and reliability. Specific functionalities were developed for the project, including:
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Custom post types for communities and archive sections
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Interactive maps with geolocation of Jongo communities
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Integration of video, audio, and historical documents
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News area with filters and frequent updates
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Implementation of accessibility best practices (WCAG) and mobile optimization
Resultados
O site do Museu do Jongo tornou-se um portal de referência na valorização da cultura afro-brasileira no ambiente digital. Desde o lançamento, observamos:
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Maior alcance entre educadores e instituições de ensino
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Ampliação da visibilidade das comunidades praticantes do Jongo
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Uso frequente por pesquisadores e estudantes
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Reconhecimento do projeto como exemplo de design com impacto social e cultural
Conclusion
Designing the website for Jongo Museum was far more than a design project — it was an act of respect for the memory, identity, and territory of communities that remain vibrant and active.
We created a digital space that honors the past while looking toward the future — blending accessibility, beauty, and purpose. We continue to believe in design as a powerful tool for cultural preservation and transformation.
“That’s been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex; you have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple.”
“I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.”
CLIENTES
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