Labels Are Part of Viewing Art: Accessible Digital Interpretation

The Problem Often Lies Beside the Object

A 2018 report from Cooper Hewitt Labs describes the development of a more accessible exhibition guide. Its starting point was a specific discrepancy: ‘The Senses’ featured numerous objects and installations that visitors could touch, but the information about them also needed to become accessible. The museum had already introduced a large-print function on its collection website, where text could be displayed according to the device and adjusted to six font sizes. Material for printed large-print folders could also be generated from the collection database. The example reveals an often overlooked layer of design. Not only the exhibit, but also its explanation and the connection between the two determine the quality of a visit. An additional way of accessing an object is of little help if the accompanying content remains available only in a form that is difficult to read.

Adaptability Needs a Clear Foundation

The ability to enlarge text is valuable, but is no substitute for a well-structured initial design. Among other things, the W3C recommends sufficient contrast and the communication of information in ways that do not depend exclusively on colour. For digital exhibition texts, this means that headings, object details and explanatory paragraphs should be recognisable as serving different functions. An intelligible sequence is equally important. Someone reading on a small screen should not have to struggle to reconstruct the connection between a title and its description. Accessibility does not mean a single simplified version for everyone. Different needs may require different modes of presentation. An adaptable resource should therefore preserve a sense of orientation when size and line breaks change, rather than merely squeezing an enlarged version of the same rigid page onto a narrower screen.

The Visit Remains a Whole Experience

Digital interpretation becomes more convincing when it is not planned as an isolated add-on. An exhibition text must be easy to find, clearly linked to the correct object and usable under the conditions of a visit. People stand, move, divide their attention and may use different aids. This does not point to a universal technical solution. Rather, it calls for an examination of how the visit actually unfolds. The historical Cooper Hewitt report is therefore particularly interesting because it describes a development arising from a specific problem of interpretation. New projects can draw an approach from this: do not begin by choosing the most impressive digital format and then look for its purpose. First establish which information is missing through which channel, and how that access can reliably be provided with as little additional effort as possible.

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