This is an ADLAB PRO video.
ADLAB PRO is a project funded by the European Union.
This video is made available to you on a Creative Commons licence.
Hello. This is Elisa Perego
from the University of Trieste, Italy,
and in this ADLAB PRO video I will describe
the interdisciplinary nature of AD for the arts,
and help you plan a research project in this engaging
yet underexplored field.
This is Unit 10 "Research"
in Module 4 "Semi-live or recorded AD
for static arts and environments" .
Doing research is fascinating but demanding,
and it requires a great deal of preparation, motivation,
precision and organization.
Although AD does not have a very long academic tradition,
we cannot say it is a new discipline.
However, some sub-fields of AD
are still under-investigated,
such as AD for static arts and environments,
where there are still several aspects
that would benefit from further research.
Before tackling this sub-field of AD,
you should be aware of its interdisciplinary nature,
and of the fact that it borrows from various disciplines
such as audiovisual and intersemiotic translation,
linguistics, psychology and aesthetics,
history of art, iconography and iconology,
museum visitor studies,
but also art, museums and touch,
special didactics, disability studies,
and pedagogy for specific learning disabilities,
to mention just a few.
As in all research fields, before you start your project,
you should define and articulate a research question
based on a thorough analysis of the literature
and on the theoretical gaps in the field.
Just to give you some examples,
systematic audience or reception
research on the way touch tours, descriptive tours,
live or recorded AD are processed
and to what extent they are appreciated by people
with and without sight loss is still missing.
Once you are sure of your research question,
identify the materials you need and define your methodology.
For instance, if you decide
to carry out a corpus-based linguistics analysis
on a written corpus of museum AD scripts,
you’ll have to allot some time to retrieve the texts
before starting to explore textual data
through a software.
If you prefer to carry out a reception study,
make sure you know how to prepare
and administer questionnaires, to recruit participants,
as well as to collate, gather and analyse data.
In general, the APA Publication Manual
will be helpful if you need a guide
on how to organize your research and publications.
Further issues needing exploration in this field
are the translation of ADs for static art,
but also the implementation of descriptive and touch tours
in culturally marked contexts.
Think for instance of how to describe
items belonging to ethnographic museums,
or very distant forms of art
that do not comply with the traditional Western standards.
If you like this sub-area of AD,
I’m sure you will find your way easily.
There are so many forms of art that can be described
and still need to be approached academically:
think of photography, book illustrations,
puppetry or doll museums,
dress or costume museums, to mention just a few.
And there’s a wide, more or less complex,
and more or less stimulating,
range of means to make them accessible,
depending on how multimodal you want your text to be.
Regular audio description live or pre-recorded
can in fact be successfully paired
with further auditory, tactile,
and even olfactory supports.
Now, a good way to start your research work
can be to go through all the references
that are offered for this unit,
but also to search material online and in libraries.
Do not forget that searching for references or other sources
is part of an active research process.
You can look for guidelines produced by different institutions,
or have a look at the ARSAD seminar programs
to get an idea of the range of topics
that have been dealt with over the years.
You will spot those which fascinate you more
and need further study.
Finally, to collect more information
and learn how to present your results,
you can consider listening to the ADLAB PRO project talks
delivered during our Multiplier Events,
or you can listen to the audio tracks of the YouTube channel
“Audio for All” that we have created.
The channel includes a specific section
on museum accessibility
and a number of museum ADs in different languages.
It will certainly offer some food for thought.
Ultimately, do not forget that research
in the realm of AD for static art and environments
cannot involve just static library work.
Indeed, it can be a very dynamic process.
Move, be active,
visit museums and heritage sites
with and without accessibility facilities.
Talk to as many stakeholders as possible,
including museum staff but also people with sight loss,
whose feedback will be invaluable to guide you in asking yourself
and hopefully answering the right research question.
It is now time for you to try and plan
your research project on art AD.
Do so trying to choose a topic
that really needs to be researched,
and trying to offer a real contribution,
no matter how small.
I am sure you will be inspired by the works of Neves,
Fryer, Candlin, and Hutchinson, to mention just a few.
But also by the work of VocalEyes,
illustrated in their website,
and by the results of the EU project COME-IN!.
Good luck!
The preparation of this presentation
was supported by ADLAB PRO. Audio Description:
A Laboratory for the Development of a New Professional Profile
financed by the European Union under the Erasmus+ Programme,
Key Action 2, Strategic Partnerships.
Project number:
2016-1-IT02-KA203-024311.
The information and views set out in this presentation
are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect
the official opinion of the European Union.
Neither the European Union institutions and bodies
nor any person acting on their behalf
may be held responsible for the use
which may be made of the information contained therein.
This was an ADLAB PRO video.
ADLAB PRO partners are: University of Trieste,
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona,
University of Antwerp, Adam Mickiewicz University,
RTV Slovenia, Utopian Voices,
Soundfocus and Royal National Institute of Blind People.
ADLAB PRO was funded by the European Union.
This video was made available to you on a Creative Commons licence.