Cromalia: el diseño de un libro infantil interactivo que fortalece la práctica de actividades de artes plásticas.

Abstract

CROMALIA is a children's editorial design project developed as an undergraduate thesis at the School of Graphic Design of Universidad Santo Tomás (Bogotá, 2026), aimed at creating an interactive illustrated book —both analog and multimedia— for children aged 6 to 9, with the purpose of enhancing the learning of visual arts practices. This systematization of experience analyzes how the design decisions made throughout the project enabled a shift from a traditional conception of the book as an informative object toward its understanding as a space for mediation, interaction, and creation. The project was carried out using a qualitative methodology based on Design Thinking, structured in four phases —data exploration and collection, data analysis, ideation, and testing— which allowed for a progressive approach to the needs, perceptions, and forms of interaction of the child audience. Through an iterative process that included fieldwork, prototype construction, and user validation, a tension was identified between classical editorial design structures and the ways children relate to content. The systematization focused particularly on the development stage of the second prototype, the moment in which the creative team's meaningful learning became explicit: moving from a design centered on aesthetics and information toward one that articulates analog interactivity (pop-up mechanisms), augmented reality, and a harmonious integration between text and illustration. The results show that, unlike the first prototype, the second one achieved a transformative impact on users, as validated through testing sessions that revealed greater interest, sustained attention, and emotional connection with the material. In conclusion, the project demonstrates that children's editorial design, when developed with a clear pedagogical and experiential intention, has the capacity to turn books into dynamic experiences that strengthen children's learning and emotional connection with editorial material, contributing a replicable methodological approach to the field of children's editorial design for future similar projects.