Accessible heritage experiences introduced at Derby Museums

Derby Museums has launched a new offer to improve access and participation in the arts for sight-impaired visitors.

Developments include audio descriptions of key paintings in the Joseph Wright Gallery and the introduction of bookable tactile object-handling sessions for groups.

The developments follow a period of community consultation with Derby’s Impaired Visual Society and Sight Support Derbyshire, whose volunteers all have lived experience of sight loss.

Volunteers conducted an access audit of Derby Museums’ sites and made recommendations that have been instrumental in shaping these improvements.

Lucy Bamford, Senior Curator of Art and the Joseph Wright Collection, said: “We have had a long-standing desire to improve the accessibility of our collections and are really pleased that with the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund and with a range of community partners, we have been able to bring this to fruition.

These changes bring Joseph Wright’s masterpieces to life for visitors who are vision-impaired or who might be looking for a little more depth and detail behind the paintings.”

Ten major works by artist Joseph Wright, including ‘The Orrery’, ‘The Alchymist’ and ‘Self-Portrait at the Age of About Forty’, now feature audio descriptions.

These commentaries provide detailed descriptions on the people, objects and spatial arrangements within each painting, allowing visitors with sight loss to build a mental image through descriptions of colour, texture and setting.

Additionally, a number of handling boxes have been curated, featuring objects from Derby Museums’ collections, such as archaeology, Egyptology and fossils.

In addition, lighting at the Museum of Making has been enhanced and increased visibility demarcations now highlight architectural features that could present obstacles to visually impaired visitors.

Derby Museums’ front of house and learning teams have also received specialist training to enhance awareness of visual impairments and ensure visitors experiencing sight loss receive a warm and informed welcome.

Interested groups can book a tactile object-handling session, or find out more about accessibility at Derby Museums, by contacting info@derbymuseums.org.