Audio description in museums. A service provider perspective

Museums and galleries have traditionally focused on visual experiences. However, through multifaceted, sensory, social and participatory encounters, people with all levels of sight can enjoy equally meaningful engagement with arts and heritage. Audio description is the principal tool for supporting accessible and enjoyable museum visits for blind and visually impaired people. Precise, logically structured language, interwoven with historic references and cultural narratives, can bring collections and venues to life in a powerful way. A flexible tool, audio description can be delivered in live or recorded formats, across cultural settings from contemporary art galleries to natural heritage sites. Combining audio description with other stimuli, such as tactile or olfactory opportunities, or participation in creative activity, can create rich, multisensory visitor experiences. This chapter will consider best practices for describing artworks and artefacts, explore the process of creating museum audio description in both live and recorded forms, and posit that a sustainably inclusive museum culture rests on audio description being part of a wider organisational commitment to access.