Between the art of communicating and the craft of being accessible: a study of accessibility features for visually impaired visitors on a Belo Horizonte Museum website

Abstract

This research aims to analyze how accessibility is configured in museums websites. To perform this study, eight subjects with visual impairment were invited to visit the website of Museu de Artes e Ofícios-MAO and according to their experience, they were asked to answer a questionnaire about the conditions and resources offered by the web page. The quiz was available on an online platform and its link was sent via e-mail. The research also counted on the use of an automatic tool that evaluates the accessibility of websites. All tools were inspired by the Guidelines of Web Accessibility, guidelines elaborated by Consortium W3C and aiming to make web pages contents more accessible. Websites can contribute to the projection of the institution and its collection, to be an element that stimulates, orientates or completes a visit as long as it enables the communication process through the provision of adequate resources to the abilities and capacity of individuals. Regarding the accessibility analysis of the MAO website, the research has shown that although some elements are in line with accessibility recommendations, the webpage still does not meet expectations regarding other aspects. Finally, there were no texts found on the web page that refer to accessibility or describe the resources to expand access, which may indicate that this thematic is not a main concern of the Museum website.

Key-words:
Accessibility; Museums; Sites; Communication; Internet