Exhibitions of art on show at Greater Anglia rail stations have been created by blind and partially sighted (BPS) people to highlight the impact of sight loss on daily lives.
Marking the 200th anniversary of Braille and 200 years since the birth of the modern railway, the exhibition, called ‘Do You See What I See?’, features art that visually represents how sight loss impacts blind and partially sighted people differently.
It also features special railway heritage signs that include braille and tactile lettering.
Sight Loss Council volunteers and other blind and partially sighted individuals worked with a range of artists to transform original pieces of art into a collection based on descriptions from blind and partially sighted individuals on the unique and personal ways they perceive the world.
The exhibition at Colchester, Norwich, and Broxbourne rail stations will run until the end of April and aims to dispel misconceptions about how blind and partially sighted people create and access art.
The awareness-raising project by Essex Sight Loss Council, funded by national sight loss charity Thomas Pocklington Trust, received £5,000 in financial support from Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Improvement Fund.
“Essex Sight Loss Council is excited to be working on this project with support from Greater Anglia and their Customer and Community Improvement Fund (CCIF),” said Sight Loss Council Engagement Manager for the East of England, Samantha Leftwich.
“This initiative to install art at stations, that has either been created or in collaboration with blind and partially sighted people, helps highlight how everyone can create and enjoy art and supports our wider public-facing campaigns.
“The aim of the project is to improve some waiting areas in stations by using art to raise awareness of living with a vision impairment. It has also been designed to encourage our wider communities to engage with art in other ways, including feeling tactile art and listening to audio descriptions, and demonstrate how blind and partially sighted people actively participate in the arts.”
To find out more visit https://www.sightlosscouncils.org.uk/
Photo: Rail 200 braille artwork at Colchester station. Credit: Greater Anglia
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