[accessibleimage] Re: Fw: BlindNews: Can You Feel It In Your Art?

I enjoyed this exhibition some years ago when it was exhibited in 
Cheshire UK My visually impaired colleague acted as a guide.  It was 
interesting to see that fully sighted people tended to shy away from 
touching the carvings - they missed a lot.
Ann


In message <00a501c51436$28e5de70$6501a8c0@D3DTZP41>, Robert Jaquiss 
<rjaquiss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes
>Hello:
>
>     I thought this might be of interest.
>
>Regards,
>
>Robert Jaquiss
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Geoff Stephens" <BlindNews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>To: "Blind News Mailing List" <BlindNews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2005 11:48 PM
>Subject: BlindNews: Can You Feel It In Your Art?
>
>
>> The Times Higher Education Supplement
>> Tuesday, February 15, 2005
>>
>> Can You Feel It In Your Art?
>>
>> By Thomas Watson
>>
>> An exhibition of sculpture has restricted visitors to their sense of
>> touch. Thomas Watson reports
>>
>> The very idea of an art exhibition in which you are not allowed to see the
>> exhibits may seem an odd one, but the Blind Alphabet C show encourages
>> visitors to ditch their preconceptions and explore artwork exclusively
>> through the medium of touch.
>>
>> Each of the 77 sculptures in the "show", lovingly crafted by South African
>> artist Willem Boshoff, resides in a box that bears a Braille description
>> of its contents. This ensures that the only way sighted people can
>> possibly experience the sculpture is to feel their way around it, while
>> the visually-impaired visitors get a little more information.
>>
>> Another twist from the norm is that the sculptures represent a range of
>> archaic words, ensuring that visitors have no preconceived meanings or
>> definitions.
>>
>> "People not only cannot see the pieces, but they don't know the meaning of
>> the words either, so they are forced to use their sense of touch," says
>> the exhibition's co-ordinator Bob Wright.
>>
>> Blind Alphabet C has been touring the country since 1998, two years after
>> the foundation Art-Sense, its parent company, was formed with the aim of
>> providing educational art that could be appreciated by sighted and
>> non-sighted alike.
>>
>> The involvement of schools was a major part of the Art-Sense plan right
>> from the outset.
>>
>> "We've had everything from Key Stage 1 pupils to adults with special
>> educational needs getting involved," says Bob.
>>
>> "Visitors love to handle the pieces. It means so much more to people than
>> looking at pictures."
>>
>> Teachers are briefed before all visits so that they are aware of the
>> dynamics of Blind Alphabet C. The wide range of wooden pieces, for
>> example, offer pupils a variety of figurative and abstract objects to
>> experience.
>>
>> Pupils are always "interested and amused" by the exhibition, says Bob,
>> although the challenge of using touch as the main sense leaves some
>> bewildered.
>>
>> "Encouraged to feel the pieces with their eyes closed, some people are
>> hopeless at properly examining them," he says.
>>
>> It's a welcome change to visit a museum where the rules steer well clear
>> of "Do not touch".
>>
>> Blind Alphabet C is on show in the following museums: North Somerset
>> Museum, Weston -Super-Mare, March 12-April 9; Museum of Reading, April
>> 23-July 23; Prestongrange Museum, Haddington, September 5-October 30
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>

-- 
Ann Gardiner
tel:01928 733040

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