The Right to Beauty: Art, Museums, Accessibility
Andrea Sòcrati
This article focuses on the right of persons with disabilities to access and enjoy art and cultural heritage, a right heavily influenced by the degree of accessibility provided by museums and cultural institutions.
For school-age young people, this right becomes essential for a complete educational experience and for active participation — continuing throughout life — in cultural and social processes, benefiting from the opportunities that art and cultural heritage offer in terms of well-being and health.
The current state of accessibility in museums is analyzed, addressing the main obstacles that have yet to be overcome. Special emphasis is placed on sensorial, cultural and, particularly, «visual» barriers, which are the most challenging to dismantle.
Reference is made to blind and visually impaired individuals, as their condition presents the greatest challenges in accessing art and cultural heritage.
It is worth noting that two blind individuals founded a unique museum, the Museo Tattile Statale Omero in Ancona, whose main mission is accessibility and inclusion. Following a brief presentation of the Omero Museum, the article focuses on the perspectives and possible strategies — emerging from the museum’s long-standing experience — for making a cultural offering, still predominantly based on visual museology, accessible to blind individuals.
Keywords
Art, Museums, Cultural Heritage, Accessibility, Inclusion, Tactility, Multisensoriality, Museology.
