Can Visual Art Be Made Accessible?

Whether it is a simple drawing of a tree or an intricate painting of a forest, visual art definitely mesmerizes all of us. And through the power of the Internet, we can now access paintings, drawings, and other forms of visual art more easily.

But here’s a thought: How can you appreciate visual art if you cannot see it? Would there still be a way for you to enjoy what others are seeing?

Millions of Internet users face this situation. Although the blind can use assistive technology to browse websites and read information, viewing artistic images is impossible for this group.

Nevertheless, owners of visual art websites can still do something to help blind people understand and quite possibly, appreciate the images in their sites. This is by providing clear descriptions of the images in each page.

This task is relatively quick and easy. Website owners can write a description of their images. The description should be concise enough but should still include the essential details of the pictures. Then they can ask their web developers to include this information in the pages containing the images.

So when blind persons visit the site and move their cursor to an image, their screen reading software will say the description given to the image. This will not enable blind people to fully appreciate visual art. However, it is a way to give them sufficient information in a form which they can access and understand.

The World Wide Web provides new opportunities for visual artists to promote their paintings and drawings. And it is nice to know that somehow, the Internet can be used to help blind people understand a form of art that is enjoyed by many.