Baltimore: The City of Accessible Arts (BCAA)

Background: Baltimore: The City of Accessible Arts aims to transform Baltimore into a city of accessible arts. Essential to this Baltimore-based consortium is the creative leadership of disabled artists and community members, working in close collaboration with museums, galleries, art spaces, and Baltimore organizations serving disabled adults and youth.

Disabled visitors and artists should expect and rely on comprehensive accessibility—not just ramps and accessible bathrooms, but inclusive features such as accessible displays, audio description, amplification tools, assisted listening tools, ASL interpretation, live captioning, plain language, tactile exhibits, Braille, QR codes, floor guides, quiet spaces for decompression, and resting benches.

As we’ve learned over many years, these accommodations and universal design features were initially developed and executed to benefit people with disabilities, but they ultimately benefit all. Our city belongs to all of us when arts environments and programs commit to and broadcast inclusivity and belonging. Building on a legacy of civil rights work in schools and communities, this Baltimore-based project, rooted in disability justice and led by adults with disabilities, aims to collaborate with national and international arts partners in breaking down barriers to access.

This project originated from the Elizabeth Talford Scott Community Initiative (ETSCI), which concluded in the summer of 2024. This citywide initiative, led by curator George Ciscle, featured nine concurrent exhibitions of Scott’s artwork, all centered on accessible exhibition design. At its conclusion, six participating museums—RFLM, The Peale, Walters, MCHC, BMA, and JELMA—committed to continuing this work and enhancing their capacity for accessible exhibitions.

Feasibility Study: To maintain connections, advance discussions on exhibition design, accessibility features, and inclusive practices, and to determine interest and need, BCAA held monthly hybrid convenings with previous and new institutional partners between July 2024 and December 2025. These open and constructive discussions foster a citywide commitment to accessible exhibition design, offering valuable opportunities for learning, dialogue, and meaningful improvements.

Anticipated Results: BCAA, led by disabled artists and consultants, collaborates with museums, galleries, and community organizations to advocate for the rights of adults with disabilities and older youth. Its Leadership Team, composed of three disabled experts in disability justice and the arts, identifies barriers related to disability, race, class, and language that limit participation. With fiscal coordination from The Arc Baltimore, the initiative positions Baltimore as a national leader in accessibility.

From July 2024 to the present, BCAA-led convenings and field trips fostered trust, assessed accessibility, and identified barriers to accessibility. Through cross-disability, multiracial, and intergenerational organizing, disabled adults have facilitated training and dialogue, setting the stage for a Public Convening

Ongoing discussions with disabled artists and community members refine accessibility needs. The Leadership Team hires consultants with diverse disabilities—including low vision, hearing impairments, autism, mental health challenges, and intellectual disabilities—who contribute lived expertise to improve exhibitions, programs, and events.

Public Convening: All of these activities and efforts to organize came together on July 11, 2025, at the Enoch Pratt Free Library Central when BCAA organized its first day-long Public Convening bringing together museums, public art spaces, artists with disabilities, and disability-focused organizations to explore inclusive practices. By centering the voices of disabled people, the event modeled best practices in accessibility, propelling Baltimore toward becoming the City of Accessible Arts.

Two hundred and eighty-five people attended this hybrid event, which was streamed online in addition to hosting many in-person attendees. Marguerite Woods led a training for volunteers to act as talking signs for blind attendees. The event featured a range of speakers and events, including a film screening of Alycia Cunningham’s “Seeing Without Sight,” a film that models the ways that artists can incorporate visual description into their work, artist talks by disabled artists, and presentations by arts administrators and social service organizations. The convening also featured an exhibition of works by disabled artists, organized in partnership with Make Studio and Visibility Arts Lab. Like the monthly convenings, this event included a range of accessibility options, from a hybrid option, to ASL interpretation, audio description, live captioning, sensory breaks, a quiet room, and visual description.

Deliverables

●          On-going information and accessibility resources for museums and arts spaces.

●          Paid employment for individuals with intellectual, physical, and developmental disabilities.

●          Expanded audiences of people with disabilities, enhancing access to Baltimore’s cultural institutions.

●          A full-day hybrid public convening at the Enoch Pratt Central Library.

A multi-year vision including: 

●          A fund to promote accessibility solutions.

●          Paid employment for people with disabilities.

●          Promoting leadership of disabled Black artists and community leaders. 

●          Training on disability justice, inclusion, and accessibility for arts professionals.

●          Opportunities for museums and galleries to hire disabled consultants to inform practice toward accessible exhibitions and programs.  

●          In-person and virtual planning meetings with arts organizations.

●          Expanded outreach to youth and disability and accessibility organizations across Baltimore.