Making art accessible _ talk
How do we make art accessible to loved dementia and sight impairments - Joint artist-in-residence Fe Heffernan's talk on Thursday night 5th September 6pm
Fe will demonstrate how she placed braille onto her work - and will also be showing public works for SWELL, SYDNEY WEARABLE ARTS and SCULPTURE ON THE FARM .
Having had lived experience as a carer for a loved one with dementia and sight impairments, in this practice-based research, I explored whether tactile sculptures could provide better, more meaningful access to art for people with dementia and for blind people. While a number of artists and galleries have made a significant contribution to the development of tactile art by pushing the boundaries and
exploring new ways to engage the sense of touch, there is always room to investigate how the inclusion of tactility in art experiences can facilitate health and social benefits.
The advocacy for tactile sculpture includes its promotion as a health benefit, as documented in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities OHCHR Signatories to the Convention are required to take reasonable measures to provide for inclusive equal access to art by making necessary and appropriate modifications to ensure a person with disabilities has their enjoyment or exercise on an equal footing with others of all human rights and freedoms. This research suggests that these barriers can be overcome with accessible experiences of tactile sculpture.
My creative work extends the knowledge of tactile sculpture as practice-based research to explore how practice outcomes can increase access to art, which has social and health benefits of strengthening motor skills, re-learning their surroundings and meaningful self-expression. Activation of my work is by the sense of touch,
while the work is tactile because it helps blind and dementia sufferers express themselves and re-learn their surroundings. A selection of examples of my creative outcomes illustrates the use of certain textures, different mediums used, styles of making and the size of the items made, to achieve tactility and therefore, better
access to art.
How do we make art accessible to loved dementia and sight impairments - Joint artist-in-residence Fe Heffernan's talk on Thursday night 5th September 6pm
Fe will demonstrate how she placed braille onto her work - and will also be showing public works for SWELL, SYDNEY WEARABLE ARTS and SCULPTURE ON THE FARM .
Having had lived experience as a carer for a loved one with dementia and sight impairments, in this practice-based research, I explored whether tactile sculptures could provide better, more meaningful access to art for people with dementia and for blind people. While a number of artists and galleries have made a significant contribution to the development of tactile art by pushing the boundaries and
exploring new ways to engage the sense of touch, there is always room to investigate how the inclusion of tactility in art experiences can facilitate health and social benefits.
The advocacy for tactile sculpture includes its promotion as a health benefit, as documented in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities OHCHR Signatories to the Convention are required to take reasonable measures to provide for inclusive equal access to art by making necessary and appropriate modifications to ensure a person with disabilities has their enjoyment or exercise on an equal footing with others of all human rights and freedoms. This research suggests that these barriers can be overcome with accessible experiences of tactile sculpture.
My creative work extends the knowledge of tactile sculpture as practice-based research to explore how practice outcomes can increase access to art, which has social and health benefits of strengthening motor skills, re-learning their surroundings and meaningful self-expression. Activation of my work is by the sense of touch,
while the work is tactile because it helps blind and dementia sufferers express themselves and re-learn their surroundings. A selection of examples of my creative outcomes illustrates the use of certain textures, different mediums used, styles of making and the size of the items made, to achieve tactility and therefore, better
access to art.