Veronica Lewis, also known as “Veroniiiica with Four Eyes,” writes that some may be surprised that she loves visiting art museums, uses a blindness cane, and, in fact, visited the Smithsonian Art Museum/National Art Museum frequently when she served as an intern in the area. She notes that “there are a ton of awesome resources for making art museums and exhibits more accessible for visitors with low vision,” both in person and virtually. To share the experience with others, Veroniiiica offers her favorite tips for visiting art museums and utilizing art education resources with people who are blnd or have low vision. Here are a few of her pointers:
– Take a tour specifically geared to visitors who are blind or have low vision: Many large museums provide these visits, which may have titles such as InSight tours, descriptive talks or tours, touch tours, Access Programs, and Low Vision and Blind Tours.
– When exploring virtual archives, search for high-resolution images: Whether visiting virtually or planning an in-person trip, it is helpful to check out high-resolution images online of items on display and enlarge the details on a phone or tablet. This can be especially helpful if an exhibit is not well lit or cannot be viewed close up.
– Get a large print or braille exhibit guide, if available: Several museums have these at their front desk or offer digital guides that can be downloaded online.
– Identify items with Google Lens: Take a photo of items or labels with Google Lens and then search Google for the image so they can be enlarged.
– Couple museum tours with podcasts or audio guides: Many art museums provide resources on site and online to help visitors better understand works on display, such as free podcasts, audio guides/tours, and audio description.
For additional information, read the full article on Veroniiiica’s website, providing Tips for Visiting Art Museums with Low Vision.
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