In this symposium, we explore ideas of ‘disability gain’ and ‘blindness gain’ in the arts. This Early Career Symposium investigates how an expanded approach to the senses can be creatively explored across different art forms.
The day features cross-disciplinary contributions from practising artists, curators, writers and historians in three themed panels on Words, Situations and Haptics.
The symposium expands on ideas of ‘disability gain’ and ‘blindness gain’ in the arts, subjects which have been researched in recent years by authors including Rosemary Garland-Thomson, Georgina Kleege and Hannah Thompson. We’ll explore how sensory innovations across a range of practices and media can generate inclusive and accessible experiences of the arts that challenge ocularcentric and ableist conventions.
This symposium is part of a three-year research project, Beyond the Visual: Blindness and Expanded Sculpture. The project, a collaboration between Henry Moore Institute, University of the Arts London and Shape Arts, is the recipient of the inaugural Arts and Humanities Research Council Exhibition Fund. The project will culminate with a landmark exhibition, Beyond the Visual, which opens at Henry Moore Institute on 28 November 2025, foregrounding work by blind and partially blind artists.
