WAUSAU, WISCONSIN: What’s it like to go through life without sight? All ages are invited to engage in a multisensory event “A Taste of Life Without Sight” at the Woodson Art Museum, Saturday, October 19, 1-3 pm, part of a worldwide educational campaign during Blindness Awareness Month.
Participants rotate among interactive stations in the galleries and meet community members with blindness and low vision as they talk about art, demonstrating that by engaging other senses blindness doesn’t have to inhibit visual art appreciation.
Learn about the white cane law, assistive devices and technologies, various levels of visual impairment, etiquette – how to show respect, kind courtesy, and understanding when interacting with a person without sight – and more. White Cane Safety Day is observed nationally on October 15, recognizing the white cane as the symbol of independence and self-reliance, promoting courtesy and special consideration for individuals with blindness or low vision on streets and thoroughfares, according to the National Federation of the Blind.
Children can have their names printed on a Braille writing machine, touch tactile art, listen to a portable talking book, shake a soccer ball with a rattle inside, handle a beeping Frisbee®, try hands-on art projects, and watch two videos. The videos recommended by the National Federation for the Blind include “Jake and the Secret Code” and “It’s OK to Be Blind.”
All visitors are invited to participate in an Art Beyond Sight multisensory experience, led by Museum educators. Art Beyond Sight, offered for individuals with blindness and low vision as a multisensory way to explore the visual arts during each exhibition, provides in-gallery experiences followed by art making – frequently led by artists in residence. Museum educators often incorporate a touch tour of selected artwork or raised-line drawings, verbal descriptions, sound effects, aromas, or taste. Museum educators have led Art Beyond Sight programs at the Woodson Art Museum since 2006.
Art Beyond Sight during the current exhibition features “Birds in Art” artist, taxidermist, and bronze sculptor Paul Rhymer , Saturday, October 26, 10:30 a.m.-Noon. To register for this free event, call the Museum at 715-845-7010. This Art Beyond Sight session is one of many programs animating Rhymer’s artist residency, “Casting Call: Paul Rhymer Works in Bronze,” Monday through Sunday, October 21-27. For more information, visit www.lywam.org, e-mail the Museum at museum@lywam.org, or call 715-845-7010.
Woodson Art Museum
Hours: Tuesday – Friday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Thursdays during Birds in Art 9:00 am – 7:30 pm
Saturday – Sunday Noon – 5:00 pm
Closed Monday and holidays
Admission: Always Free Admission
Phone: 715.845.7010
Fax: 715.845.7103
Email: museum@lywam.org
Location: Franklin and 12th Streets, Wausau, Wisconsin 54403-5007
(700 N. 12th Street)
Online: www.lywam.org
