Improved access to museum collections without vision: How museum visitors with very low or no vision perceive and process tactile–auditory pictures

Abstract

This study investigated how museum visitors with very low or no vision perceived and processed tactile pictures and/or audio-descriptions of visual paintings. Two visual paintings were selected and a focus group was established (N = 8). Qualitative interview and observation data were collected. This study found two types of museum visitors: those who explored the tactile picture first and those who rather listened to the audio-description. When exploring each element in the tactile picture, they all started by exploring the element’s global (shape) outline and, when struggling to recognise it, turned to the audio-description. They preferred the audio-description to start describing where their fingers were. Tactile texture attracted their attention, sparked their curiosity, and enabled them to create a mental image of the tactile picture, but also confused them. They preferred the global (element shape) outline to be straightened out, so that curves become angular, and texture only for targeting certain elements.