'Do not touch!" is one of the most common signs at any museum. But for people who have no sight, the kind of sign they want a museum to have the most may be one that simply says the opposite: "Please touch!"
Since 2013, the visually impaired in Thailand have been given a chance to enjoy a museum just like the fully sighted. Interactive Museum in Honor of Her Majesty the Queen, which displays specially designed objects for touching, was set up by the Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital to develop a place for the blind to learn. It is run by Siriraj Medical Museum, which has been around since 1982 and takes care of six museums, all on the hospital premises.
But with a mega plan to establish a fully-fledged, attraction-packed museum dedicated to people with disabilities within its new Siriraj Bimuksthan Museum next year, the Faculty of Medicine decided to relocate the Interactive Museum from Siriraj Hospital to the Bangkok School for the Blind on Ratchawithi Road, which has been working in collaboration with the hospital. The handover ceremony took place on Sept 16.
Raksak Chairunjuansakul, the principal of the Bangkok School for the Blind who is visually impaired himself, is more than delighted to have the museum at his school. He believes the location of the school (close to Victory Monument) is more accessible than Siriraj Hospital and thus makes it even easier for blind people to visit. Last year, an estimated 400 visually impaired people had the chance to visit the museum.
"The country's not-so-good transportation and the size of the hospital doesn't facilitate blind people to go to the museum at Siriraj Hospital," said Raksak. "But given that our school is located in the heart of the city and is a place that blind people are already familiar with, the museum is better off being here."
Examples of the objects included in the first exhibition include a mock Lady Slipper orchid and a model of the Royal Barge Suphannahong. However, the museum can organise new exhibitions on different themes by rotating all of the objects received from Siriraj Museum just like when it was organised at the hospital. The past three themes were "Projects Of Her Majesty The Queen" in 2013, "Medicine And Healthcare" in 2014 and "Thai Medicine And Tourism" this year.
Visually impaired visitors, one person at a time, walk through the museum holding the handrail marked with bumps -- in sync with the audio guide. Each bump marks the location of an object and participants are given three minutes to touch and learn about each exhibit. Verbal descriptions are provided through a audio headset. Descriptions come with background music and sound effects to make the experience more entertaining.
Amnat Srisang, a 13-year-old student with visual disabilities from the Bangkok School for the Blind, has attended the museum in the past three years. He thinks that the museum is a hard-to-come-by opportunity for people like himself.
"The museum gave me an opportunity to enjoy something that I had never got to do before so I consider myself lucky," said Amnat. "I got to both listen and touch walking through the museum. I couldn't see but I was able to feel. I think the museum understood what people like me needed."
But since the museum has been handed over to the school, it's the teachers themselves who play the main role in managing the museum and guiding visitors. They are now being trained by the team from Siriraj Museum so that they can fix technical problems as well as maintain the upkeep.
Raksak not only wants his students to fully benefit from the museum but also wants other schools or institutions for blind people to look at it as an example that they can follow.
"We have an ambition to be a centre for anyone who is interested in learning about blind people," said Raksak. "Normally we are a school that other schools come to learn from. So here's another great chance for us to show those educational organisations or those working for blind people that there are plenty of learning opportunities out there for blind people."
Raksak also welcomes those with full sight to the museum to learn to imagine from the perspective of blind people.
"The ultimate goal is when there is no separation between non-blind people and people with visual disabilities or with other disabilities," said Raksak. "It's when we can create something for all people to use together. For that, we would then be able to say that we have created something fully sustainable.
"If we keep building something for one group and something else for another group, at one point we will end up paying attention more to just one. The other group is then left behind."
A student touching the mock Lady Slipper orchid.
Visitor touching the Royal Barge Suphannahong model at the original venue, Siriraj Hospital.
