MUSEUMS FOR ALL

Since Museums are public service organizations, they must be opened to the common people and their resources accessible to all in the community. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights aptly declares that 'Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share its scientific advancement and its benefits'. That is to say that we must adopt the slogan "Museums for All" in the right spirit. We have to make sure that the museum visitor profile is not far different from the community profile. For this, we need to undertake visitor studies in museums and find out who are the visitors and non-visitors.

Visitor Studies help museums to understand who come to museums and who do not come to museums, what are the reasons for visitation and non-visitation, what are the constraints/ barriers to Museum-access etc A thrust area in Visitor Studies is Access Audit which helps Msuseums to ascertain the factors involved as barriers/ constraints which prevent the community to access museum resources.

The types of museum accessibility may involve socio-cultural, economic, intellectual/ learning, sensory, linguistic, attitudinal and physical aspects. Museums in India have to think of removing the constraints/barriers to these various types of accessibility in order to make it more accessible to the community.

Once we identify the access-barriers/constraints which do not allow public to access museums and its resources, the next step is to sensitise Museum staff about the various aspects of museum-accessibility. The sensitized staff may be able to undertake methods to control/ remove the constraints/barriers. Museums may reorganize their educational services to include various innovative services/ programmes of interpretation, extension, in-reach and out-reach activities.

One of the major target audiences while working for museum accessibility is the Persons with Disability (PWD).

It is also pertinent to point out that museums are a good informal educational/ learning settings for the community, including the PWD. Communication and learning in museums is based on real objects, which do not know the boundaries of language and literacy. Objects may be seen, touched, smelled and even tasted and details about them heard in Museums. Since many disability conditions are based on the lack or impairment of senses such as hearing and vision, Museum settings, which use multi-sensory communication techniques, have got great potential to become unique resource centers for the PWD.

For realizing the dream of "Museums for All" to make Museums accessible to all, the latter need to network with other similar informal learning settings (such as aquaria, archives, planetariums, zoos, heritage sites etc) as well as with other agencies, both governmental and non-governmental, and committed volunteers and individuals working for the welfare of the disabled and disadvantaged. The involvement of disabled persons is vital for the success of any such networking.

In this connection, it is heartening to note that the National Museum Institute (NMI), with the help of the National Museum (NM), has launched a study entitled Project MAD (Museums, Accessibility and Disabled). Links have been made with several agencies working for the welfare of the disabled and efforts are on to concentrate on a few thrust areas such as Access Audits of the National Museum, as well as Sensitisation of its staff. The Project has also inspired the students of Museology of the NMI to prepare a temporary exhibition entitled 'Ehasas: Senses and Images" specifically targeting the disabled.

The National Museum proposes to organize, in collaboration with the National Museum Institute, a national seminar on Arts and Museums for Persons with Disability entitled "Museums for All" during 22-24 March 2003. This Seminar is aimed at bringing together at one place the various efforts in Museum Access being undertaken at various museums and other related public service institutions in India. The Seminar is also expected to provide a forum for discussion to make museums accessible to all, and to publicise good practices in the field of accessibility. It is expected that deliberations of the Seminar will lead to the drafting of a National Policy on Access to Museums.

The Seminar will deliberate on many aspects on Museum Accessibility such as:
  1. General: Museums as public service institutions; Philosophy of museum-accessibility; Social inclusion; Legal aspects; International efforts; National Government efforts etc.

  2. The user community: Aspects of visitors and non-visitors; Visitor studies; Types of Museum Accessibility; Obstacles//Barriers to accessibility etc.

  3. Museums and the Disabled: Categories of disability; Access Audits; Sensitization etc.

  4. Accessible Museum Exhibits: Exhibition design; Accessible labels; Interactive exhibits; use of Technology; Handling sessions; Discovery exhibits; Open storage etc.

  5. Accessible Museum Services: Interpretation; Extension; In-reach; Out-reach etc.

  6. Accessibility beyond the four walls: Accessibility at monuments, heritage sites, zoos, protected areas; Outdoor interpretation for disabled etc.

Even though participants are expected mainly from Museums, other institutions defined as museums by the International Council of Museums (such as archives, science centers, planetariums, zoos, botanical gardens, aquaria, heritage sites, protected areas etc) will also be represented. Active participation of NGOs working for the development of Persons with Disability in the organization of the event is an important aspect of this Seminar.

There will be no Registration Fee. However, the number of participants will be restricted. The participants shall have to be sponsored by their institutions. They also have to make their own arrangements for accommodation in Delhi.

Those who are interested or have experience in any of the aspects of museum accessibility, are invited to attend and/or submit papers at the Seminar (Please use the Expression of Interest).

Dates to remember

Last date for receipt of Expression of Interest along with Abstract: 15-03-2003
Last date for receipt of full paper: 20-03-2002
Dates of Seminar: 22-24 March 2003

Communication

  1. Dr. B. Venugopal, Registrar,
    National Museum Institute,
    Janpath, New Delhi-110011.
    Tel/Fax: 011- 23011901.
    Email: nminstitute1@vsnl.net
    vbha56@yahoo.com

  2. Dr Vijay Mathur, Education Officer
    National Museum, Janpth, New Delhi-110011