For many visitors, looking at a work of art and better understanding its meaning is simple thanks to the use of audio guides, but that isn’t the case for deaf people, who have to choose between looking at the work or watching a video in Sign Language that explains its meaning. That’s why we came up with “Unmute Art”, a video guide in Italian Sign Language, the only one in the world that makes it possible to frame a work of art and see it come to life, as its meaning is explained in Italian Sign Language. The works chosen for this innovative project are some of Andy Warhol’s most famous screen prints.
“Unmute Art” was devised and created by Orpheo completely free of charge for the National Agency for the Deaf, in collaboration with Arthemisia. The video guides were handed out to visitors to the temporary “Andy Warhol” exhibition at the Basilica di Pietrasanta in Naples in Autumn, 2019. We used image recognition to enable the automatic activation of the video in Italian Sign Language: the video is superimposed on the work in augmented reality and, in this way, it is possible to create the illusion of seeing the famous screen prints come to life and speak with their hands. The video guide really is accessible to everyone since it also includes subtitles, a soundtrack of commentary and music and is aimed at all visitors.
Unmute Art was a winner at the 2020 edition of the GLAMi Awards. One of the most prestigious prizes in our sector, the GLAMi Awards annually recognise and celebrate innovative projects in the cultural heritage sector, exhibiting the best works created in this field throughout the world.