A Conversation with Inés Pascal: Accessibility and Cultural Spaces

Inés values museums that allow her to avoid long queues. Due to her disability, she needs to change posture frequently and appreciates being able to optimise her time by entering directly.
However, she emphasises the importance of allowing companions to skip queues alongside wheelchair users, ensuring that the visit is shared without exclusion.

Some historic sites and museums present unexpected steps without alternative access routes such as ramps or lifts, making visits impossible for specific users.

Other recurring issues include:

• Counter height: Reception desks are often too high, creating communication difficulties or requiring a companion for wheelchair users.
• Restroom facilities: Inés praises the widespread adaptation of museum toilets, highlighting spacious layouts that allow proper mobility and, if needed, the assistance of another person.

Exhibition elements are sometimes positioned at heights that are not accessible. Display cases or wall-mounted works can be challenging to view from a seated position.

As a positive example, Inés mentions her visit to the National Library Museum in London, where tablets are available to provide alternative access to content that would otherwise be inaccessible.

Although institutions strive to create spaces "for all," Inés points out that this generalised approach sometimes benefits no one in particular. She highlights two areas of focus:

1. Staff training and empathy: The human touch when dealing with unexpected challenges can make a profound difference for visitors who often feel excluded.
2. Technology as a personalisation tool: "There is no greater personalisation than disability, because every person is unique," Inés explains. Future museums could use technology to tailor experiences to each visitor's specific needs.