[accessibleimage] Re: exercises for consultation event

Hi Sylvie,

                thanks for getting back to me. Here are two examples of ideas for consultancy exercises that I have already proposed to my superiors in the gallery. They are designed to illustrate to our visitors with disabilities that the contributions they might make to our arts program are richly precedented; to explore the potential role of the arts in the construction of identity, and to trace the rich and complex interplay between artistic and social attitudes towards disability.

1) We consider the usefulness or otherwise of the term 'Disability Art' by providing, on one side of the room, a selection of paintings by artists with disabilities (Frida Kahlo, Casper Banjo, Matt Sesow, Lisa Fittipaldi, Ernie Pepion, Jane Gerus, etc). On the other side of the room are positioned a series of very brief biographical sketches of the artists, including descriptions of their disability. Attendees have to try to attribute each painting to the correct biographical sketch. This would lead to a discussion of the ways in which an artist's disability can inform his/her art; of whether emphasising disability tends to do an injustice to the artist's talent and output; of the nature of the dialogue that might ensue between artists with disabilities and non-disabled artists; of different ways in which the artists's work might be promoted, etc. Does the term 'Disability Arts' give a helpful visibility and identity to the experiences of people with disabilities? Might it draw attention to the constitution of their unique experiences and eventually help to nourish a greater appreciation of their talents among members of the non-disabled community?

2) This exercise is designed to encourage participants to reflect on the way descriptions of and attitudes towards disability evolve as knowledge and sensitivity develops. It should also generate ideas about the differences between social and artistic receptions of disability: We divide the group into three sub-groups, and allocate a facilitator to each of the sub-groups. Group A are given a series of 18th Century portrayals of disability, Group B -- 19th Century, and Group C 20th Century portrayals. Attendees initially react to the portrayals at a basic level -- do they like the depictions, what feelings do they evoke?, why and how are these feelings stirred, etc. The facilitator then elaborates on the nature of attitudes towards disability prevalent in society at the time, and some personal information about the author. After the different members of each group have pooled their ideas, and the ideas are written in bullet-point form on a flip-pad, an exchange of reactions between the groups ensues. (I am thinking, for example about reflection on the differences between 18th Century religious depictions of helpless and passive blind or crippled people waiting to be healed -- the etching of Peter and John healing the cripple at the gate of the temple -- and a 19th Century depiction of an independent and active person with a disability such as deGoya's Beggars Who Get About on their Own in Bordeaux. This comparison can be extended to incorporate the 20th Century so that attendees get an idea of how contemporary society's attitude towards disability came to be the way it is. This component might culminate in a discussion of Anita Silver's argument that since disability tends to be embraced much more freely and receptively in the arts than it is in society, we should give some thought to aestheticizing our social responses to disability.

Another exercise might extend to all art disciplines Trevor Patrick-Roper's contention that the unusually shaped figures by artists such as El Greco and late Turner, might be attributable to the gradual diminishing of their eyesight.

I have been told that exercises of this nature will not generate ideas that will help the Gallery to decide what measures might increase the inclusivity of the events we facilitate by encouraging the participation of people who would ordinarily stay away from galleries on account of their disability. So what I am trying to come up with is two or three exercises that are more likely to result in the poolong of ideas on the issue of what lengths our gallery can go to to encourage participation by visitors with disabilities. I was hoping that somebody might know of a suitable web-based resource, or that some of you might have been in a position similar to the one I currently find myself in, and that you discovered a couple of exercises or materials that proved particularly useful.

While I am here, I would like to thank all of you who gave me recommendations as I tried to design a conference poster for blind people. Your help was really useful -- I designed a speaking poster, using nine speaking labels on an A1 sheet, backed on bubble-wrap which folded into itself in such a way that it could be mailed to the blind person's home address. My poster set out the different components of a non-visual aesthetics course and was really well received by the few people who came into contact with it. So thanks again,

                     David.