For years, the Valentin Haüy association has been working to make culture accessible to visually impaired people. This is the case with the traveling exhibition “Tactile Tour” which proposes to discover a dozen famous works reproduced in relief. It is currently offered at the Michel Crépeau media library in La Rochelle.
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Allow the visually impaired to access art, in all its forms, and more broadly to culture. This is one of the missions of the Association Valentin Haüy (AVH), which has been working for 130 years throughout France to help the blind and visually impaired and provide them with the means to lead a normal life. This is how this traveling exhibition, baptized Touch Towerwhich invites you to discover famous works reproduced in relief at your fingertips.
Open to all
In addition to touching them, visitors are equipped with an audio device that will tell them about each work and its specificities. “It is an audio guide, I made a recording for each work in order to facilitate the tactile visit of the visually impaired. It gives them indications on the work, the reliefs, the characters, and it allows them to better appreciate the painting.“, explains Gigi Briffaut-Slagmulder, volunteer in charge of culture at the local branch of the association.
She specifies that this experience is open to all: “There are visits organized for the sighted, with blindfolded eyes and audio headsets to be able to find their bearings, and thus understand the difficulties that a visually impaired person can encounter.“.
The association regularly organizes cultural events for the visually impaired, such as audio-described plays. In France, according to AVH, it is estimated that 65,000 people are blind, and 1.2 million very visually impaired.
Exposure Touch Tower – until March 2, 2023 – Michel-Crépeau Media Library, avenue Michel Crépeau. 17000 La Rochelle. Free access during the opening hours of the media library. Information on +33 5 46 45 71 71.
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