Matthew Cock - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Articles by Matthew Cock

e-Accessible Culture: Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies, 2018

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.

The Museum Blog Book, 2017

Books by Matthew Cock

Architectural Heritage, 1997

Reports by Matthew Cock

The report highlights the importance of online access information for the UK museum and heritage ... more The report highlights the importance of online access information for the UK museum and heritage sector, and tracks the changes in the state of access over the past four years. It includes guidance for venue staff on creating and presenting access information online, covering around 40 different access aids, facilities, resources, and events. Using data and best-practice examples, the report is structured to mirror the visitor journey, covering aspects from pre-visit research such as finding and getting to a venue (such as directions, parking and step-free and level access), aids and facilities at the venue (such as toilets, lifts, Large Print guides, induction loops) and downloadable resources that can be used at the venue (such as sensory maps and visual stories).

Theatre Access 2021, 2021

Between 17 May and 16 August 2021, VocalEyes, Stagetext and the Centre for Accessible Environment... more Between 17 May and 16 August 2021, VocalEyes, Stagetext and the Centre for Accessible Environments ran a survey of UK theatregoers who use access facilities, services or support. Over 500 people responded and shared their views on using public transport, getting vaccine passports and a range of other factors that would influence their decision to return to theatres. They also told us about their experiences of digital theatre, access services online, the accessibility of various online platforms, and whether they would continue to seek out and pay for theatre online in future.

Alongside the survey findings, the report also provides an access guide for theatres, key theatre website access information, a directory of access and disability arts organisations and recommended reading.

From March to June 2020, arts access organisations VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums ran... more From March to June 2020, arts access organisations VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums ran a survey of museum and heritage site visitors who are also users of access facilities, resources and events. Though the UK had just gone into lockdown and museums and heritage sites around the country closed to the public, the survey asked people to reflect on visits to venues that they had made in the previous 12 months. As museums and heritage sites are re-opening in a changed world, the survey report presents an important benchmark against which we can measure ourselves in the coming months and years.

An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characterist... more An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characteristics of the diverse range of characters that appear on stage, and in particular, the visible, physical markers of race, gender, impairment / disability, age and body shape. Furthermore, a discussion as to why such characteristics should be described, as a basis for developing a common understanding and rationale for any proposed changes to practice. The research involved the whole community involved in theatre audio description: blind and visually impaired users of the service, actors, other theatre professionals, and audio describers working around the UK and the world, through an online survey (June to August 2019), in-depth interviews (January to March 2020) and collaborative workshops (April 2020).

A major barrier to disabled people visiting museums is the lack of advance information. Museum we... more A major barrier to disabled people visiting museums is the lack of advance information. Museum websites are key tools for providing visitor access information, and the absence of this contributes to the ‘disability engagement gap’; where people with a disability are less likely to be regular or frequent visitors of museums than those who are not disabled.

The State of Museum Access 2018 comprises guidance to help museums create or review the information that they provide online, in order to welcome potential visitors with disabilities, inform them of any barriers to access at the museum and reassure them that the museum has worked or is actively working to remove them.

Together with the guidelines are statistics from an audit of the access information found on the websites of 1606 accredited UK museums in Spring 2018.

A survey of UK theatre website access information for disabled audiences

A survey of UK museum website access information for blind and partially sighted visitors

Papers by Matthew Cock

Journal of Museum Education

The Routledge Handbook of Audio Description

An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characterist... more An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characteristics of the diverse range of characters that appear on stage, and in particular, the visible, physical markers of race, gender, impairment / disability, age and body shape. Furthermore, a discussion as to why such characteristics should be described, as a basis for developing a common understanding and rationale for any proposed changes to practice. The research involved the whole community involved in theatre audio description: blind and visually impaired users of the service, actors, other theatre professionals, and audio describers working around the UK and the world, through an online survey (June to August 2019), in-depth interviews (January to March 2020) and collaborative workshops (April 2020).

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.

e-Accessible Culture: Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies, 2018

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.

The Museum Blog Book, 2017

The report highlights the importance of online access information for the UK museum and heritage ... more The report highlights the importance of online access information for the UK museum and heritage sector, and tracks the changes in the state of access over the past four years. It includes guidance for venue staff on creating and presenting access information online, covering around 40 different access aids, facilities, resources, and events. Using data and best-practice examples, the report is structured to mirror the visitor journey, covering aspects from pre-visit research such as finding and getting to a venue (such as directions, parking and step-free and level access), aids and facilities at the venue (such as toilets, lifts, Large Print guides, induction loops) and downloadable resources that can be used at the venue (such as sensory maps and visual stories).

Theatre Access 2021, 2021

Between 17 May and 16 August 2021, VocalEyes, Stagetext and the Centre for Accessible Environment... more Between 17 May and 16 August 2021, VocalEyes, Stagetext and the Centre for Accessible Environments ran a survey of UK theatregoers who use access facilities, services or support. Over 500 people responded and shared their views on using public transport, getting vaccine passports and a range of other factors that would influence their decision to return to theatres. They also told us about their experiences of digital theatre, access services online, the accessibility of various online platforms, and whether they would continue to seek out and pay for theatre online in future.

Alongside the survey findings, the report also provides an access guide for theatres, key theatre website access information, a directory of access and disability arts organisations and recommended reading.

From March to June 2020, arts access organisations VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums ran... more From March to June 2020, arts access organisations VocalEyes, Stagetext and Autism in Museums ran a survey of museum and heritage site visitors who are also users of access facilities, resources and events. Though the UK had just gone into lockdown and museums and heritage sites around the country closed to the public, the survey asked people to reflect on visits to venues that they had made in the previous 12 months. As museums and heritage sites are re-opening in a changed world, the survey report presents an important benchmark against which we can measure ourselves in the coming months and years.

An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characterist... more An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characteristics of the diverse range of characters that appear on stage, and in particular, the visible, physical markers of race, gender, impairment / disability, age and body shape. Furthermore, a discussion as to why such characteristics should be described, as a basis for developing a common understanding and rationale for any proposed changes to practice. The research involved the whole community involved in theatre audio description: blind and visually impaired users of the service, actors, other theatre professionals, and audio describers working around the UK and the world, through an online survey (June to August 2019), in-depth interviews (January to March 2020) and collaborative workshops (April 2020).

A major barrier to disabled people visiting museums is the lack of advance information. Museum we... more A major barrier to disabled people visiting museums is the lack of advance information. Museum websites are key tools for providing visitor access information, and the absence of this contributes to the ‘disability engagement gap’; where people with a disability are less likely to be regular or frequent visitors of museums than those who are not disabled.

The State of Museum Access 2018 comprises guidance to help museums create or review the information that they provide online, in order to welcome potential visitors with disabilities, inform them of any barriers to access at the museum and reassure them that the museum has worked or is actively working to remove them.

Together with the guidelines are statistics from an audit of the access information found on the websites of 1606 accredited UK museums in Spring 2018.

A survey of UK theatre website access information for disabled audiences

A survey of UK museum website access information for blind and partially sighted visitors

Journal of Museum Education

The Routledge Handbook of Audio Description

An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characterist... more An exploration of when and how theatre audio describers should describe the personal characteristics of the diverse range of characters that appear on stage, and in particular, the visible, physical markers of race, gender, impairment / disability, age and body shape. Furthermore, a discussion as to why such characteristics should be described, as a basis for developing a common understanding and rationale for any proposed changes to practice. The research involved the whole community involved in theatre audio description: blind and visually impaired users of the service, actors, other theatre professionals, and audio describers working around the UK and the world, through an online survey (June to August 2019), in-depth interviews (January to March 2020) and collaborative workshops (April 2020).

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.

Inclusion, Disability and Culture, 2017

Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing a... more Within a museum context, audio description (AD) is generally thought to be a tool for enhancing access for people with a visual impairment, in other words, as a means of providing access, through verbal description, to visual details of an object or artwork. Taking evidence from researchers and practitioners, we argue that AD has a much broader potential scope and benefit. We consider AD in more established fields, such as film, and then explore the issues impacting on AD within museum environments. We also explore the literature on multisensory learning and memory, to create a rationale for the benefits of AD based on multisensory imagery, with or without perceptual experience. We conclude that, through the use of imagery, AD has the potential to guide people around a painting or object in a way which can enhance the ‘seeing’ ability of all people, whether or not they have sight. Further, multisensory experience, based on imagery or perceptual experience, combined with semantic or fact information, would enhance memorability. As such, taking AD from the niche audience of visual impairment, and projecting it into the mass market of the ‘sighted’, could have a revolutionary impact on the museum experience and our understanding of access and difference.