RMaking culture and art accessible to everyone, from children with autism to foreigners. It is the ambitious goal of Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC): a tool that Teresa Righetti uses to Frida Kahlo courageous painterpublished for the series Likewise. Precisely because I grow up (La Meridiana editions). It is the first story truly for everyone about the life and works of the Mexican painter.
Art and reading for everyone, Frida Kahlo’s biography in Caa symbols arrives in bookstores
The book tells the painter’s biography, the artistic techniques used in her paintings but also suggests various “laboratory activities”: experiences that those with a cognitive disability – but not only – can do in the classroom or in other educational contexts to get closer to art .
The P seriesarimenti. Precisely because I grow up was born from the collaboration between Edizioni La Meridiana, ARTISTICAA by Teresa Righetti and the Librarsi group of Inkwell Project of the Accaparlante cooperative of Bologna (Socio-Occupational Center for young adults with disabilities). Also forthcoming in the same series Banksy mysterious artist And Vincent Van Gogh melancholic painter.
CAA (Alternative Augmentative Communication) to approach the history of art
The author of the book, Teresa Righetti, tells this adventure, master’s student in art history and criticism at the University of Milan, who dedicated her three-year thesis to the theme of the accessibility of books and libraries. «While preparing it I realized that there were no art books in symbols. I tried to take care of it.”
CAA (Alternative Augmentative Communication) it is the set of knowledge, techniques, strategies and technologies that facilitate and “increase” communication in people who have difficulty using the most common communication channels. It is mainly used by children and young people with different disabilities, such as people on the autism spectrumbut also by foreign people who do not yet know the language or by small children who can’t read yet.
Symbols, images and invitations to creativity
«The system that I used in the book is the system of writing in symbols: squares that contain a word and a symbol that represents it (called widget symbols)”, explains. The whole book is written in symbols. In the first part, the life and main works of Frida Kahlo are told and each page is accompanied by an illustration that Righetti created with the graphic tablet and which helps the reader to better understand the written part.
«The second part consists of those I have called creativity exercises, with delivery and materials always in symbols,” he explains. Suggestions for activities to learn while having fun. «For some exercises, alternatives are proposed because I wanted to make it clear that you can find a different way of doing things based on your abilities. Those who can’t draw can use stencils, clay or newspaper clippings. I would like this to be the beginning of a journey towards art, which is accessible and for everyone.”
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