"At the time, she was 'confronting my own assumption that speaking equals engagement,' Bradford said over Zoom in January. As more autistic children were visiting galleries as part of school programming, she began asking questions about creating programs intentionally tailored for disabled students and adults."
"Many other museums lump together reasonable accommodations for patrons and staff along with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance into one person's job description, but Bradford was able to focus on tailoring programs to patrons' needs and wants."
"In the years that followed, she started a monthly tour in American Sign Language led by deaf guides, alongside a program for individuals with memory loss and their caregivers called Just Us, which ran from 2017 to 2024."
Lorena Bradford initially pursued speech-language pathology before earning a PhD in 17th-century Dutch and Flemish printmaking. Working as an educator at the National Gallery of Art since 2008, she attended the LEAD Conference in 2010, which sparked her focus on arts accessibility. Recognizing that speaking does not equal engagement, Bradford questioned assumptions about disabled visitors and advocated for intentionally designed programs. Hired as the first dedicated head of Accessible Programs at the NGA, she developed multiple initiatives including American Sign Language tours led by deaf guides, the Just Us program for individuals with memory loss and caregivers, and a program bringing Georgetown medical students into galleries to develop observation and communication skills. Her work expanded museum accessibility beyond standard ADA compliance.
#museum-accessibility #disability-inclusion #arts-education #accessible-programs #cultural-institutions
Read at Hyperallergic
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