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Sensitisation will play a key role in the Debrecen museum’s spaces and art education sessions: the aim is to focus more and more on the needs of disabled and disadvantaged visitors. At a briefing on the project to promote access to culture for children with autism spectrum disorder, it was emphasised that access to culture is a fundamental right of all citizens. At the end of January, the institution will host students with atypical developmental needs from the St Ephrem Greek Catholic Kindergarten and Primary School.
An “easy-to-understand communication” textbook in Hungarian called “KÉK”, has been prepared for the Botany exhibition, which makes the exhibition accessible and understandable for people with autism.
For MODEM, it is important that art is accessible to all. This year’s aim is to make a conscious commitment in this area, which is how the collaboration with the Greek Catholic school in Debrecen was born.
“We prepared specifically with documentation and photographs, so that we can show the children where they are arriving, so that they feel safe. We would like them to be able to process the museum pedagogical experiences they have gained here. This also has a bridging effect, so that parents can also be proud of their children, so they do not always feel that they live with an autism spectrum disorder,” Director of the St. Ephrem Greek Catholic Kindergarten, Primary School and Primary Art SChool, Péter Vas said.
For Executive Director of MODEM, Kata Vizi finding a common voice with children with intellectual or physical disabilities is of particular importance, as she has often played with atypical youngsters through her physiotherapist mother. She said she is grateful that as the head of an institution she can now make a difference to their everyday lives.
“We would like to build steadily and gradually, so that not only this but all of our exhibitions would become available this year, and thus we would be able to open the institution with conscious, successive steps,” she mentioned.
Deputy State Secretary for Public Collections and Cultural Development at the Ministry of Culture and Innovation, Máté Vincze stressed that Hungary’s constitution states that access to culture is a fundamental right of every citizen.
“This cooperation is a so-called pilot project, a test, a game to see how professionals , educators, museologists, art experts can work together to bring the values of art to social groups who are otherwise less accessible,” he said.
A total of 15 students with autism spectrum disorder are expected to attend the first art education sessions under the programme on the 22nd and the 23rd of January.
Source and photo credit: dehir.hu
