Please Touch the Art: Tactile Learning and Accessibility at the High Museum
Quilter and teaching artist Marquetta Johnson creates workshops and artful, touchable resources for visitors with visual impairments and sensory processing disorders.
By Nicole Cromartie, Manager of Family Programs, and Marquetta Johnson, High Museum of Art Teaching Artist
What does access look like at the High?
Did you know that 56.7 million Americans have some form of disability? That’s 1 in 5 people in the United States. At the High Museum, we make countless decisions each day to break down barriers for our visitors.
As the Manager of Family Programs at the High, it’s important to me that our programs are accessible for all. On the occasion of the Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disabilities (LEAD) Conference, I sat down with Teaching Artist Marquetta Johnson to discuss the High’s accessibility efforts for family audiences.
Marquetta has been a teaching artist at the High for 12 years and is passionate about her role in providing access to the arts. She designs and teaches art-making workshops inspired by the High’s collections and exhibitions. She also uses her skills as a quilter to create vibrant, durable, tactile resources for visitors with visual impairments.
Nicole and Marquetta Discuss Accessibility and Family Programs
Nicole Cromartie: Marquetta, we are so lucky to have you bring your passion for access and talents as an artist and quilter to help us offer a welcoming environment for families to exercise their creativity.
As a lead teaching artist for Second Sundays, you design and facilitate art making-workshops for the thousands of families we welcome each month. Over the past three years, we’ve made a lot of progress in ensuring that the full experience of Second Sunday is accessible and inclusive. Can you talk about your work as it relates to accessibility?
Marquetta Johnson: Accessibility is a major concern in the work we do every day at the High. We are proud to be a trend-setting, urban, cultural destination surrounded by diverse communities, and we’re committed to the idea that creativity adds to one’s quality of life. Accessibility is important because it enables us to provide cultural access to everyone. We want everyone to be enriched and feel valued when they enter our galleries and workshop spaces.
In family programs like Second Sundays, we are creating an environment that fosters community and acceptance of all ages and abilities. Each month, we create a pop-up sensory room, provide adaptive equipment, and so much more. We want families to express themselves and experience art in an environment that puts people first.
NC: About two years ago, you started creating tactile versions of the books featured in our children’s book illustration exhibitions, beginning with Eric Carle: I See a Story, so that more children could access the incredible stories. What was your inspiration?
MJ: I was inspired to create tactile books at the 2016 VSA Arts Intersections Conference in Pittsburgh. Many participants shared information regarding children living with developmental disabilities, sensory issues, and autism spectrum disorder.
One workshop offered strategies to encourage students living with autism, visual impairments, and developmental disabilities to engage deeply with literature. A few ideas expressed were to highlight the artistry of children’s picture books, stimulate interest and excitement around reading, and to make the love of books a natural part of a holistic life experience. These goals were in line with our family initiatives here at the High as we move toward providing an inclusive and edifying experience.
NC: Your beautiful tactile books are now beloved fixtures in our monthly pop-up sensory room, available for families who need a quiet space to take a break during busy Second Sundays. I am curious about your process for making the tactile books. How do the books’ features help make the content more accessible?
MJ: The tactile books I created are designed for all learners, especially those who are living with developmental disabilities or sensory processing issues. All learners are engaged by color and design because these artistic elements stimulate and challenge the senses of sight, sound, and touch. Sensory experiences enhance creative thought and help learners connect with their world in a deeper way. The books’ features — line quality, shapes, colors, textures, and forms — all work together to help illustrate the stories beyond the visual images.
NC: Another project you’ve spearheaded is creating tactile boards, also for our sensory room. Could you explain what these are, how they are used, and your inspiration for creating the set you’ve made for the High?
MJ: There is a growing awareness of the fact that learning is deepened when ideas are accompanied by sensory experiences that may include vibrant colors, sounds, and textured, shiny, or reflective objects. A tactile board is a panel of durable material that has color, patterns, textures, and objects that offer a sensory buffet of things to touch, rub, shake, and handle that engage children, fueling curiosity and wonder around everyday objects. I was inspired to create tactile boards because they provide all children with opportunities to have purpose-driven movement that enhances learning and provides a meaningful way to interact with their caregivers.
The tactile boards I created were visual and textural expressions of the elements of art, color theory, and principles of design. They also were embellished with selected everyday objects that had texture, weight, and function.
I was inspired by the patterns, designs, and materials in my own quilts to create a format that would allow me to have a lot going on in an organized way. I incorporated traditional quilting techniques like patchwork, appliqué, and beadwork to add dimension and contrast. I even considered the weight and temperature of things: Shells and natural materials seem cooler and heavier than felt and paper.
The boards are made with safety as a guiding principle because each of the objects — every button, bead, and sequin — was sewn down to prevent children from swallowing them. With the supervision of an adult, young children are encouraged to snap, button, zip, and mash pieces of the tactile boards and thereby grow their fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination.
NC: Working to ensure that the High is accessible and welcoming is an ever-evolving, ongoing practice — and I really appreciate all of the work you do, Marquetta. This week, we’re lucky to host and present at the Kennedy Center’s Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability (LEAD) Conference, which will take place in cultural institutions throughout Atlanta. Why is our participation in the LEAD conference important?
MJ: We will have an opportunity to share our experiences developing accessible programs with other educators and administrators. I’m excited to share the work we have been doing with the sensory room on Second Sundays, creating one-of-a-kind tactile books for our children’s picture book illustration exhibitions, and making tactile boards that help learners connect with the works of art on display at the High in a deeper way.
Links and More Information
Hear Marquetta Johnson speak at the High’s Quilting Conversation, Saturday, September 22, Hill Auditorium, 2 p.m.
Visit the High’s accessibility page. If you have questions about accessibility or would like to request accommodation, please contact access@high.org.
Check out the Leadership in Arts and Disability (LEAD) Conference page.
