adorn,
equip aims to develop dialogue between artists and people who use disability
aids and equipment. An audience development programme was created to encourage
this dialogue. adorn, equip audience development programme
adorn,
equip aims to develop dialogue between artists and people who use disability
aids and equipment. An audience development programme was created to encourage
this dialogue.
The City Gallery worked with Creative Arts Consultancy, an organisation with extensive experience of arts initiatives and disability issues, in working with 20 groups of disabled people from different age groups and cultural backgrounds.
The groups were involved in consultation activities, aimed at overcoming barriers to the arts, and improving access to the Gallery for disabled people.
All groups participated in tailor-made interpretive events, and ten groups entered into an in-depth consultative process with the Gallery. Two groups were also involved in the commissioning process, by working with Sarah Crawford in developing S.A.M. (Ashfield) and Kittie Wheelchair Bag (the Mosiac Group).
The groups advised on matters including display of exhibits, production of the exhibition catalogue, and text panels. Feedback from these sessions will inform the long term activities and future exhibitions at The City Gallery.
The adorn, equip audience development programme created links between audiences and artists, and between groups and individuals. By providing a forum for discussion, new relationships emerged and new approaches were fostered. Funding was provided by the Arts Council of England through the New Audiences Development Programme.
The following groups were involved in the audience development project:
Navjyot Group
Breath Easy
Hampton House
Orchid Centre
Broadview Centre
Crown Hills Community College
M.E. Support, Leicester
Millfield Day Centre
Shopmobility Leicester
Tuesday Redezvous (Mosiac)
Ashfield
Remit
Douglas Bader Centre
Adult Opportunities (Glebe House)
Loughborough Project for Visually Impaired People
Headway
Melton Mowbray Mental Health Project
Illustration: Disabled people giving an Indian dance performance in the City Gallery, Leicester as part of the audience development programme
© The City Gallery, Leicester and the artists: 2001
This site was built by Ju Gosling aka ju90 during an artist's residency at Oriel 31 in November 2001