Presented at the 2014 National Art Educators' Association. Abstract: This session explores current practices and future possibilities in technology applications that include museum visitors and students with disabilities in art education. We present case studies that harness existing and emerging technologies and demonstrate the potential for equal and timely learning opportunities for all learners. These examples provide solutions to accessibility challenges, and inherently offer wider applications to better engage all users. Case studies include a collaboration between The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Parsons The New School for Design and Technology. This partnership invites graduate students to create tools for engagement in the museum for visitors with disabilities. Other case studies include innovations that facilitate crowd sourcing and other methods of multimedia accessibility such as video and image description for people who are blind or partially sighted. Participants will learn about key factors to consider when implementing technologies to enhance accessibility and usability.

1. Inclusive Learning through
Technology in Art Museums
and Classrooms
#NAEA14
Rebecca McGinnis, Museum Educator, Access and
Community Programs, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
@RebeccaMcGNYC
Yue-Ting Siu, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments
(TVI), UC Berkeley & San Francisco State University
@TVI_ting
Steven Landau, President, Touch Graphics, Inc.
@TouchGraphicsUS

2. Multimedia #a11y
● Accessibility Usability!
● Usability = User Experience
Focus on the learner
● Universal learning environments
● Multimodalities
GOAL: Inclusive spaces for
independent and equal participation
@TVI_ting

3. Tools
Visual access: Magnification, Contrast, Font, Desktop
Tactile representation: Tactile graphics, 3D printing
● Braille Authority of North America (BANA) -
Guidelines & Standards for Tactile Graphics
http://brailleauthority.org/tg/index.html
● 3D printing for Accessible Materials in Schools
http://bit.ly/3dprinting4accessiblematerials
Image and video description (alt text):
● Image description guidelines
http://ncam.wgbh.org/experience_learn/
educational_media/stemdx/guidelines
● Video description guidelines
http://bit.ly/descriptiontutorials
@TVI_ting

4. YouDescribe.org
http://bit.ly/youdescribetutorial

5. The Met + Parsons Museums,
Accessibility, Technology Collab
Workshop
@RebeccaMcGNYC

6. The Met + Parsons Museum
Accessibility Collab Workshop
● Collaboration
● Model for design education - awareness-raising, UD
● Share process and prototypes
● Some results and next steps
@RebeccaMcGNYC

7. The Met + Parsons Museum
Accessibility Collab: Advisors
@RebeccaMcGNYC

8. The Met + Parsons Museum
Accessibility Collab: Technology
Experts
@RebeccaMcGNYC

9. Eye Tracking Project
@RebeccaMcGNYC

10. Website Group
@RebeccaMcGNYC

11. Wayfinding App
@RebeccaMcGNYC

12. Raised Painting
@RebeccaMcGNYC

13. Met + Parsons Expo
@RebeccaMcGNYC

14. @RebeccaMcGNYC

15. Final thoughts...
● None of the students had heard of Universal Design
before the class
● This collaboration between Education and Digital
Media departments has raised awareness and interest
in accessibility issues in Digital Media
● 3 former students now intern in MediaLab
● Stronger connections with advisors and experts,
ongoing relationship between students and museum -
community
@RebeccaMcGNYC

16. Case study
San Diego Museum of
Art’s Audio-tactile
exhibit panel based on
Sanchez Cotan’s
masterpiece, “Quince,
Cabbage, Melon and
Cucumber”, painted in
Toledo, Spain in 1602.
@TouchGraphicsUS

17. SDMA has:
- Committed to improving
access to their
collections for visitors
with disabilities.
- Commissioned
TouchGraphics to
produce a number of
tactile projects to help
vision impaired visitors.
Main entrance, San Diego Museum of Art
@TouchGraphicsUS

18. The exhibit panel includes a bas relief version
of the original painting. This was created using
hand-sculpted forms for each fruit (left image).
The forms were pressed into printed vinyl sheet
to create the tactile surface (right image).
@TouchGraphicsUS

19. The resulting touchable surface combines
visual clarity with tactile shapes and textures.
Visitors can use vision, touch and listening or
any combination of these, as they explore the
image.
@TouchGraphicsUS

20. Spoken descriptions of the overall work of art and of each element
of the picture were written by curators at the museum. All content
was loaded into an online spreadsheet for easy collaboration, and
voice recordings were produced and saved as digital sound files.
@TouchGraphicsUS

21. The exhibit is intended for use by all visitors to the museum. While
audio-tactile interactivity makes the exhibit accessible to blind or
low vision visitors, it is also fun for children who love to touch and
interact. This is the main goal of universal design, and it is the key
to convincing organizations to add access features.
@TouchGraphicsUS

22. For more information, please contact us!
Rebecca McGinnis…….rebecca.mcginnis@metmuseum.org
Yue-Ting (Ting) Siu…....ysiu@mail.sfsu.edu
Steven Landau……..sl@touchgraphics.com