Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro: Incluir
Comprehensive accessibility programme for persons with disabilities, focusing on professional training, experimentation with technologies, and institutional change led by such persons. The programme, which is organised by the Education and Participation department of MAM Rio, has been running for 4 years, and includes 4 key actions that organically build on each other, securing a mechanism of internal feedback: a residency programme, with bursary, for two professionals with disabilities yearly to work with the teams at the museum; the development of experimental accessibility technologies in all the exhibitions in collaboration with experts in the field and artists; an ongoing series of visits to the institution organised collaboratively with groups and institutions focused on accessibility; and a yearly conference dedicated to the discussion of practices of accessibility within the art field. All the actions are protagonised by persons with disabilities, and their ultimate goal is to progressively modify the institution processes so that accessibility principles guide all its activities.
Explain in one sentence why you think the project you nominate is outstanding and could serve as an example for the entire community of modern and contemporary art museums.
A long-term, multi-action accessibility programme that engages with persons with disabilities as professionals, publics and interlocutors, with the goal of enacting institutional change.
Explain why this practice or program is relevant and sustainable in creating meaningful and lasting connections with people, communities, and the museum context with a medium to long-term vision.
The disability community has an important motto: "Nothing about us without us," which tells us that persons with disabilities must be part of any discussion about issues that affect their own community. The “Incluir” residency programme embraces this approach: we invite people from the community to experience the institution professionally, assess it on the basis of their own knowledge and perspectives, and to propose projects with the intention of making the museum an accessible institution. This way, the museum positions itself as a learning space, and at the same time enables its structure to create accessibility actions and policies in the areas of art, education, and culture. Besides improving the accessibility of the museum, the project also contributes to the debate between art and disability. When a person with a disability feels invited to be in a museum, they may feel capable of being in any museum, because they shape the conditions that would make them welcome.