MoMA Uses Ears To See

MoMA in New York has an audio tour with an intriguing change. Now, in addition to providing erudite commentaries from curators, the museum offers descriptions of paintings and sculptures for visitors with visual impairments. "Visual Descriptions," the tour for the visually impaired, is a 45 minute expedition covering 22 stops, and in English only. Also new is "Modern Kids," four brief children's tours lasting 10 to 15 minutes, which tries to lure young children into liking art by using music, riddles and cutesy commentary. Who knows how long it will take to complete MoMA's next experiment with technology - the multimedia tour. At the end of January, MoMA plans to experiment with an audiovisual guide that will supplement commentary from curators with images on a small video monitor. For the full story - click the title Irish Art