The Indianapolis Museum of Art is making a positive effort to make the museum more available and user friendly to individuals who are blind or have low vision. They have formed a focus group with Art Beyond Sight and are looking for roughly ten participants to come to the museum on Wednesday, December 8 at 6pm.
The purpose of the focus group, one of half a dozen being held around the country, is to help museums better serve visitors with vision loss. The process will take about one and a half hours to complete. Participants will be asked various questions and participate in open discussion. They will be asked, for instance, to speak about good and bad experiences they’ve had at museums, and to discuss programs that would appeal to them. The session will be taped and notes will be taken on the conversation. The tape and notes will be used for research only – individuals will never be quoted by name on anything said at the session. This is part of a multi-site museum accessibility study being conducted by Art Beyond Sight/Art Education for the Blind; the professional evaluators (researchers) for the study are research staff at the Museum of Science, Boston.
If you and/or others you know are willing to assist, please contact Jen Mayhill, Coordinator of Education Programs at 317-923-1331 x213 or jnucciarone@imamuseum.org.
The IMA has been great at accommodating people with disabilities to ensure they have just as valuable of an experience as those without disabilities. Check out our post on accessibility in Indiana museums and on the accessible paths at the 100 Acres Art and Nature Park.