Envision Opens First-of-Its-Kind National Gallery Exhibiting Art for and by Blind or Visually Impaired Artists and Audiences
Envision, a non-profit organization furthering possibilities for those who are blind or visually impaired, announced it will open an inclusive and diverse art gallery featuring work of 18 BVI artists. As the first gallery primarily for artists with vision loss, the grand opening will be held Saturday, January 15, 2022, at 12 pm CT with kid-friendly activities for families and a special reception at 6 p.m. The gallery space is in the Historic Union Station area in Downtown Wichita, Kansas.
Though the blind and visually impaired community tops 23 million in the U.S. (2018 National Health Interview Survey), art education and access disproportionally favor those who are sighted. The new Envision Arts Gallery and Engagement Center is demonstrating art accessibility to all by being the premier, national destination for artists and audiences who are blind, visually impaired and/or disabled.
The first Envision Arts Gallery exhibition has been designed to showcase portraits of the Envision Arts program’s dedicated artists who are primarily blind or visually impaired. Highlighting their stories and success, the Main Gallery will feature inspiring work from 18 different artists. The Community Portrait Wall in the Patricia A. Peer Window Gallery will offer an experiential exhibit in which the community can directly engage and participate in—giving an opportunity and dedicated space for conversations about accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion.
“It’s about something much greater than art. It’s the foundation of where it all stems from,” said Sarah Kephart, program manager of Envision Arts. “Everyone has a story to tell; whether you’re sighted, or blind from birth or in an accident, we all want to tell our story. The sighted world has put perceptions and parameters around what the blind and visually impaired community wants to do and can do. Envision is expanding these limits. We help people realize their potential through self-expression.”
The year-round Envision Arts program uses expressive arts to help foster mind, body, and spirit healing through multidimensional and sensory art. The Envision Arts Gallery and Community Engagement Center is open for blind or visually impaired (BVI) artists to showcase their work and for those with Intellectual and Development Disabilities (IDD), as well as sighted and neurotypical audiences, to experience. As the gallery space rotates, the exclusive exhibits will host national renowned BVI and IDD artists such as John Bramblitt, whose art has been sold in over 100 countries around the world, in the summer of 2022.
The Gallery will feature an Artist in Residency program designed to connect the BVI community to other artists working within the creative community. Members of the program showcase their work in the Gallery and will work along with Envision Arts to help reinforce accessibility more prominently into the art world.
All proceeds from artwork and merchandise purchased from the exhibit directly supports the artists as well as helps to fund artistic endeavors for the Envision Arts program. You can learn more about the Envision Arts Gallery and Community Engagement Center by visiting the website, envisionartsgallery.com or by calling (316) 440-1699.