Blind at the Museum: Conceptions of Access, Disability, and Inclusion from 1909 to Now

<a href="https://embed.stanford.edu/iframe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpurl.stanford.edu%2Fqf793rg7798" class="su-underline">Show Content</a>

Abstract/Contents

Abstract: What does it mean to be blind in a museum? How does blindness operate in a space centered on the practice of seeing? Scholars have frequently looked at disability through the lens of physical access, but this research seeks to understand the connections between disability and art by investigating how museums attempt to be accessible to the blind and visually impaired. By way of science and technology studies and disability studies, this analysis will argue that developments in how access is conceived has mirrored changes in the boundary between who counts as able-bodied and who is considered disabled. Through an examination and synthesis of fieldwork, annual reports, news articles, and websites, it situates museum accessibility initiatives for those who are blind within a historical arc by outlining three different periods from the early 20th century to now, and it explores what these initiatives can tell us about the ways societal assumptions about blindness can permeate into art and entertainment spaces. By placing museums in contrast with the individuals who lack the dominant sense typically assumed necessary for participation in museums, this research will provide insight into how cultural understandings of disability affect the ways we think about art and knowledge, as well as who is or isn’t allowed to be a part of these structures.

Type of resource	text
Date created	May 2019

Subject	Blindness
Subject	Museums
Subject	Accessibility
Subject	Inclusion
Subject	Science Technology and Society
Genre	Thesis

Related Publication	Kleege, G. (2018). More Than Meets the Eye: What Blindness Brings to Art. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Related Publication	Candlin, F. (2010). Art, Museums and Touch. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Location	https://purl.stanford.edu/qf793rg7798

Use and reproduction: User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
License: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (CC BY).

Preferred Citation: Walker, Reagan. (2019). Blind at the Museum: Conceptions of Access, Disability, and Inclusion from 1909 to Now. Unpublished Honors Thesis. Stanford University, Stanford CA.

Stanford University, Program in Science, Technology and Society, Honors Theses

Loading usage metrics...