* Architecture. On March 1st, the IMA opened a Nursing Mother’s Room. This private facility is equipped with comfortable seating, electrical outlets, a changing station, and sanitizer. It is also conveniently located next door to a private restroom with sink on the ground level of the museum.

* Audio Description. On March 5th, the IMA welcomed the Joe Goode Performance Group. The San Francisco-based dance group used puppeteering, narrative, sound and movement to perform the tale of Wonderboy, a superhero isolated by his gift of sensitivity. The IMA commissioned artist Dante Ventresca of Theater of Inclusion to write and perform an audio description for a universal audience via assistive listening devices.

* Awareness. On March 6th, the IMA hosted the annual Ms. Wheelchair Indiana program that named Joey Alise Murello the organization’s new public advocate. Over the next year, Joey will focus on the abilities of those with disabilities to help remove the perception that they are less capable.

Joey Alise Murello

* Affiliate. ArtsWORK Indiana and the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired sponsored a Double-Shot Documentary Day on March 13th. Two films about people making music against the odds were shown in the Tobias Theater. In addition, tours incorporating ASL and audio description with touchable artwork were offered by Museum docents.

* American Sign Language. The Indiana School for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired performed Vibrations on March 18 and 19 in the Tobias Theater. The troupe showcased talents in dance, ASL song-interpretation, drums and hilarious skits.

I realize such endeavors are “baby steps.” I know we are on a path to being in the figurative elevator. Stay tuned.

(via indianadisabilityawareness.org)

Last year my blog at this time concentrated on what we do in the gardens to make them accessible to as many people as possible. All of that information is still relevant so check it here.

With 100 Acres – The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art and Nature Park opening June 20 I decided to take a look at it this year. Since it does not have an asphalt road running through it, or concrete walks, it won’t be as easily accessed for those with mobility issues as the rest of our gardens and grounds. But there will still be much to experience and enjoy.

First you have to get there. One of the main access points will be the 38th street loop just west of the IMA’s 38th Street entrance. The parking area there will put you right at the Park. However, once there, you do have to cross a one lane road. On the other side an ADA compliant ramp will lead visitors down into the Park. Other access points will be crossing over the Pony Truss Bridge from the main IMA campus and, of course, the Canal Path that runs along the edge of the Park. Once inside, many areas in the 100 Acres will be accessible by way of crushed stone paths. Not as ideal as concrete, but much better than mulch or turf. These will lead you to the visitors’ center and some of the inaugural art pieces. Several mulch paths will give people even more opportunities to interact with nature and art. Those paths will quite simply require a different level of mobility.

I really want to emphasize the nature side of the Art and Nature Park. At this point we cannot get everybody to all areas of 100 Acres. However, you will be immersed in nature no matter where you go. Native trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, and perennials will abound. We began replacing the exotic invasives two years ago with a major tree planting. This year over 70 species and cultivars will be planted in and around Alfredo Jaar’s Park of the Laments.

Animals like beaver, squirrels, and turtles are common sights. Occasionally you might even glimpse a red fox or mink. Above all, it will be a great place to experience the joy of birdwatching. Waterfowl such as ducks and herons can be found on the lake, the canal, and the White River. Great Blue Herons show up regularly in the shallows of the lake. Birds of prey soar in the skies. Songbirds can be found throughout.

I have been crazy-mad about pileated woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus) from childhood as they were frequent inhabitants of the creek-bottom woods where I grew up. We have at least a pair of these brightly colored crow-sized birds in the 100 Acres.

It’s not all about seeing the birds, listen for their fascinating calls as well.

Our newly revamped website will also give folks multiple ways of getting information about the site, the nature, and the art. You can begin accessing information before you leave home! Heck, you can get information right now, over three months before the official opening day. Check out the 100 Acres page to learn about the geology of the site (work done with the US Geological Survey), the first eight commissions, or details of the opening week-end. Access is about more than physical attributes.

The visitors’ center will be fully accessible with ramps leading to a surrounding deck. Drinking fountains and bathroom facilities are located in this building. Educational materials to be housed here are still being developed. The Visitor’s Center will also give shelter from the elements – like our sudden Midwest thunderstorms.

Be sure and mark June 20 on your calendars. Free Your Mind and see you there.

The annual award presented by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) since 1994, recognizes institutions for outstanding social, educational, environmental, or economic contributions to their communities. According to IMLS Director Anne-Imelda M. Radice, the IMA was selected for the award based on the Museum’s “exemplary programs (that) respond to community challenges, positively impact people’s lives, and serve as models for the nation’s museums.”

National Medal for Museum and Library Service

While the award recognizes the collective contributions of the entire museum, I wanted to share just a few of the programs cited.

• FREE GENERAL ADMISSION

• VIEWFINDERS, a program of the IMA’s School & Teacher Programs Department that serves more than 9,000 third grade students annually from Indianapolis Public Schools and other school districts. Free family memberships are given to all Viewfinders participants.

• IMA ACCESSIBILITY, including partnerships with the Indiana School for the Deaf and the Indiana School for the Blind, captioning on all IMA-produced video, large print text available in the Museum galleries, and assistant listening, accessible seating, and signing interpretation in Tobias Theater.

• ENVIRONMENTAL LEADERSHIP, including the museum’s green design initiatives and ENERGY STAR award for energy efficiency – the first ever to be awarded to a museum.

• ONLINE INITIATIVES, including ArtBabble.org, an online community of 19 (and growing) partner organizations created to showcase art-based video content.

Thank you, thank you to all those who helped to make this award possible. If Senator Lugar or the staff of the IMLS were here, I’d give them a big hug. IMA colleagues – Get ready, because I’m gonna be a high fiven’ machine today!

Congrats, ya’ll!

Read more in today’s Indianapolis Star.

So how do we go about making the gardens more accessible? How about curb cuts and crosswalks to start? All the new construction when the museum expanded five years ago is compliant with ADA standards. This includes around the Sutphin Fountain and all the way down the Sutphin Mall. The ramps and steps also have handrails to aid in moving about.

When you get near the end of the mall you reach the Garden for Everyone (GFE). A garden designed to be especially accessible to those with physical disabilities. It is made possible by a gift from the late Irving Moxley Springer who was inspired by her son Michael. This garden unlike the others is specifically geared to people that may have mobility, sight, or hearing issues. The beds are raised to make it easier for a person in a wheelchair to enjoy the fragrance and texture of the plants. In the middle is a sculpture (La Hermana del Hombre Boveda) and a fountain.

Not only can a visitor enjoy the sounds of trickling water but this is the one piece of art in the gardens we want you to touch. Feel free to play in the water. Explore the sculpture with dry hands and wet. Circle through GFE and head back toward the Deer-Zink Pavillion and you will see the newly installed emergency egress from the Toby just before you reach the bridge leading to Oldfields. The exit is fully ADA compliant but integrated into the landscape as much as possible.

The gardens in the historic section of the IMA campus admittedly require a bit more work to enjoy when a person is using any sort of mobility aid. Please remember when on the road you share it with motor vehicles. Paths in this section can be fine gravel, limestone slabs, bluestone pavers, or turf.

In the Rapp Family Ravine Garden you will find some of our most challenging terrain. Steps and sloping paths abound, many without handrails. For those not interested in or unable to make the trek down into the ravine, a view of this garden from above offers many glorious/breathtaking/stunning vistas to be appreciated.

Throughout the gardens you will find signage to aid in understanding the history, design and plants involved. The labels tell you the scientific and common names of the plants. It includes an accession number that usually gives you a fairly accurate age for the plant. For instance, 2004-26 means that plant was purchased in 2004 and was the 26th plant accessioned that year. If the label says 2004E-26 then the plant already was in the gardens (E = extant) but was not given an accession number until 2004. It was the 26th extant plant accessioned in 2004.

Garden maps are available in multiple locations. Special signage may explain historical facts or special walks (Flowering Tree, Conifer).

Note the cell phone audio tour. Just call the number for more information. Also, always feel free to ask any of the Horticulturists working in the gardens questions. We love to talk plants (and good gossip is always welcome too).

I may be a touch prejudiced but I think truly all can access the gardens emotionally. Whether strolling through on a cold winter day in new-fallen snow or bouncing from blooming plant to blooming plant on a hot July evening one can always connect with some aspect of the gardens. They can be a place to heal a bruised soul, capture a child’s imagination, assist us in expressing love, or laugh ourselves silly…

So everyone, and I do mean everyone, come visit the gardens of the IMA. And this month of Disability Awareness is also a great time to begin to DISABLE the LABEL.