The relevance of the three following exhibitions correlate to my work given their multifaceted elements of design, sensory stimulation and purposeful methods of inclusivity.
Only a small number of precedent organisations orchestrate programmes relating to accessibility within the industry toward the blind and visually impaired, such organisations include ‘The talking images project.’ A collaboration with the Royal National institute of the Blind (RNIB) and the VocalEyes workshop. These corporations have implemented their auditory and tactile based programmes in the Victoria and Albert Museums ‘Please Touch’ scheme, Kettles Yard, an audio guide for the touring exhibition of work by Ben Nicholson, that also visited The Whitworth Art Gallery and Southampton City Art Gallery alongside Tate Britain on the development of two audio guides for future exhibitions.
Though there have been some improvements toward the industry, the rate in which galleries are equipping their exhibitions with accessible contrivances, is abysmal. Policies and regulations can be compromised through the installation of auditory programmes, braille indited photographs sighting the connotations of the image; contiguous to three-dimensional printed copies of works on a smaller scale allowing the viewer to transverse the composition through touch, unescorted by the preeminent concern of causing disruption to the original.
Exhibition No.1 -
'Daydreaming with Stanley Kubrick: Immersive, intense, inspirational'
The 2019 exhibition displayed a retrospective of film director Stanley Kubrick, covering his career from 'Full Metal Jacket' to 'A Clockwork Orange'. The exhibition content — a mix of props, visual media and audio content spanned several decades, evocatively considered with complimentary colours and graphics, contributing to a “filmic quality”.
Small details such as multimedia platforms and displays may not be noticeable to an able-bodied individual, one of the most common preconceived notions is that exhibitions aren't made for visually-impaired people. Society deems art to be strictly visual grounds for entertainment, neglecting the true nuances of art to be expression and submersion; all of which can be elevated by multi-sensory displays following auditory, touch and scent-based simulations.
Anna Fineman is the museums, galleries and heritage programme manager at VocalEyes, an organisation that supports and aids the blind and partially sighted access arts and heritage across the country.
“Sighted people tend to experience them in a visually biased way, but when you take a moment to tune in, there are a number of cues within a physical environment. You can sense changes in flooring under foot or in atmosphere as you move through different floors, and particular scents are given off by particular objects and artwork.”
The charity provides consultancy to exhibition sites, with a user-focused approach. Some of the exhibition design they recommend could include audio description, braille embossed images and consideration of tactile opportunities.
5 of exhibition No.1's photographs were taken courtesy of Peter Macdiarmid/LNP
Image 1: 'In Consolus-Full of Hope and Full of Fear'by artists James Lavelle and John Isaacs featuring Azzi Glasser is shown at the exhibition 'Daydreaming with Stanley Kubrick'.
Image 2: Works by artists Philip Castle and Paul Insect at 'Daydreaming with Stanley Kubrick.'
Image 3: 'PYRE' by Stuart Haygarth, a glowing tower of electric fires, is seen at the exhibition 'Daydreaming with Stanley Kubrick' in partnership with Canon at Somerset House in London
Image 4: 'Dr. Strangelove', the 'War Room', model, photography accredited to Ed Reeves
Image 5:Retro-chic pile from hotel corridor in 'The Shining.' The entrance to the exhibition has been decked out in Kubrick’s famous one-point perspective camera angle
Image 6: The exhibition starts with a focus on Kubrick's use of symmetrical one-point perspective
Exhibition No.2 -
‘City That Can’t Be Seen.’
In 2017 the Galeria Labirynt had undertaken an exhibition, whereupon a group of congenitally blind, Polish people were brought to the Lublin based gallery to create a series of works regarding their impressions of the city. The group were taken on a guided tour of publicly exhibited works, monuments and museums, attended workshops and worked with an assemblage of mediums and surfaces before evinced to the public. During the ‘City That Can’t Be Seen.’ exhibition, an educational program was installed narrating the works, alongside the lights of the gallery being dimmed and viewers of the exhibition being asked to experience the works blindfolded, using their auditory and tactile senses only, as a means to circumnavigate the exhibition, permitting the audience to experience the perspective of the blind artists.
Images 1&2: ‘City That Can’t Be Seen.’ (2017) Galeria Labirynt, Lublin. Images provided courtesy of Shutterstock.
Exhibition No.3 -
‘Al Noor – Fragile Vision’ (2014) Directed by Rachel Gadsden An assemblage of collaborative works by the chronically ill and disabled.
Studying the discriminative values of the industry and the activists within the midst, Rachel Gadsden was another artisan I came by. An exciting and unique visual and performance artist with over 20 years’ experience creating dynamic work as both solo artist, and collaborator, as well as leading a range of national and international participative programmes. Gadsden’s work in itself is revolutionary, a somewhat expressive and gestural approach is employed through the application of the medium, as the making of the work can be considered a performance to further elevate the composition. At the core of her practice are concerns as to how humankind comes to terms with mortality; by unveiling the unseen, making the disregarded, visible. Part of that process is about being vulnerable, about impairment, and working to empower others to find a voice to challenge the stigma. Gadsden hopes to eradicate the autocracy sought within the art industry and provide a safe, inclusive space for everyone, regardless of ability, disability, sexual orientation or ethnicity. Gadsden strives for diversity and representation to all.
Ultimately Gadsden’s work is underpinned by themes of delicacy and resilience, a shared and positive sense of survival and resurgence in the face of chronic health conditions, and the politics and fallacies surrounding disability; exploring how these themes are oxymoronic as a pair but harmonious in her working its delineation. Gadsden exhibits cross-cultural dialogues which consider the most profound notions of what it is to be human. I am drawn to Rachels work due to the application and performance warranted within each piece. Gadsden’s
‘Fragile Vision’ was a multi-cultural collaborative project between the UK and Middle East communities alongside numerous arts organisations. Considering perceptions of, diversity, culture, disability and openness about impairment; Gadsden tears down the preconceived barriers and dissimilative ideologies society has conditioned us to consider acceptable, providing a new age of emancipation and expression. My recent outputs have undertaken an exploration of ways to incorporate teamwork and participatory based events in order to allow everyone to be represented as an individual, not an object.
Images 1 - 6: 'Al Noor, Fragile Vision.' (2014) Images provided courtesy of Rachel Gadsden's personal blog.
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