Ensuring the Accessibility of the Ceramic Works for the Visually Impaired in the Context of Accessible Museology

Abstract

Museums are essential as places where people visit the concrete values carried and exhibited from the past to the present with their curiosity about their historical development and establish a bond with the artifacts (Kandemir, 2015). It is common for people to feel like touching the artworks during museum visits. Against this request, museum rules come into play due to the protection and preservation of the works. It is challenging to establish a complete connection with the related works because touching the works is prohibited. In addition to visitors from all age groups who make museum visits, there are also visitors with disabilities. Considering the negative situations that may occur during their visits, improvements are carried out in the museums that do not pose an obstacle to these groups of visitors. Many projects planned to bring significantly visually handicapped individuals to life and increase their social activities have started to be implemented. This study aims to provide accessibility by redesigning the ceramic artifacts in the museum display tactile to partially respond to the need for touch, which is the common wish of visitors from all age groups and visually handicapped.