Art in Works is Accessibility

This article is based on the presentations delivered during the opening conference of the PRIN (Nationally Significant Research Project) titled "The Right to Beauty: Balancing Protection and Inclusion" (Il diritto alla bellezza tra istanze di protezione e inclusione) held in Naples on April 4, 2024. It explores the theme of accessibility to art and cultural heritage by presenting a series of pioneering experiences. These experiences offer insights into the complex relationship between culture, accessibility, and inclusion, with a particular focus on issues related to disability. After examining the concepts of disability and authorship, the article concludes by proposing research questions about the relationship between art, accessibility, and inclusion, particularly in light of recent technological developments. Is ensuring inclusion as simple as implementing reasonable accommodations, as advocated by the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities? Or should we go further, rethinking languages and practices to make them spaces of encounter and experimentation between diversities, transformative spaces for traditional categories and established values? Is it enough to comply with regulations to overcome the centuries of social and cultural marginalization experienced by people with disabilities? We argue that these questions deserve further attention by the economy of culture academic community.