Arte y Arena: Freelancing in Challenging Conditions
🗺️ Chacahua, Oaxaca, Mexico
After completing my first freelance UX project with Milamex, I took on Arte y Arena as my second freelance project—this time working as a WordPress developer and designer. Arte y Arena, an artist residency located on the beach in Oaxaca, Mexico, was in the midst of a transition: the owner wanted to shift the focus away from the residency and highlight their accommodations and tour offerings instead. Their existing website was incomplete didn’t reflected this new direction.
My goal was to revamp the site’s content, navigation, and design to align with the client’s evolving business model.
Key Challenges
This project wasn’t just a simple update—the shift in focus meant that much of the existing information was no longer relevant, and we needed to rethink how to present Arte y Arena’s services. Content was incomplete or missing, visuals were limited, and the structure of the site didn’t align with the owner’s new priorities.
Adding to these challenges, I was living and working on a remote beach with spotty internet, extreme heat, humidity, bugs, sand, and poor infrastructure. I was also sick for most of my stay, making it physically and mentally tough to keep up. Communication with the owner was irregular, with most feedback delivered in person or delayed due to connectivity issues. Without a formal project plan or leadership structure, I had to take initiative in shaping the project’s direction and priorities.
Summary:
Extreme beach conditions affecting work (heat, humidity, insects, sand, poor lighting)
Limited and unreliable internet access
Laptop and equipment issues from sand and overheating
Sporadic client availability and informal feedback process
How I Tackled It
To manage these challenges, I focused first on creating a solid structure offline:
Built out page layouts and navigation menus using a WordPress theme that allowed easy customization
Updated homepage content to prioritize accommodations and tours, while linking the residency program to a separate dedicated page
Integrated Instagram feed into the homepage to highlight recent activities
Improved mobile navigation and installed plugins for SEO and image optimization
Uploaded new photos and created photo galleries for accommodations and tours
Added a donation option linked to the residency’s charity efforts
After four days of working on the beach, I relocated to town for better internet access and to troubleshoot technical issues. I completed the remaining updates and refinements from a local café.
What I Learned
This project challenged me to balance flexibility and structure in an unpredictable environment. I learned the importance of setting clearer boundaries and expectations when clients’ visions are shifting, and the value of building content and design strategies around evolving goals.
Despite the challenges, this experience helped me refine my ability to work under tough conditions while balancing multiple roles, such as designer, developer, and content strategist. I learned valuable lessons in adaptability, managing limited resources, and working with minimal guidance, which have proven useful in subsequent projects.
Current Status
As Arte y Arena’s physical space was still under construction, the owner chose to pause the website rollout until they were ready to welcome visitors. That meant I laid the technical and design foundation—setting up templates, content structures, and initial visuals—so that when they were ready, the site would be primed for launch.
