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An Ossett-based artist is welcoming viewers to ‘touch the art’ with an interactive exhibition taking place as part of The Wakefield Artwalk tomorrow (Wednesday March 29).

The exhibition by Ruth Fones called Please Touch the Art is a project funded by Wakefield Council Culture Grants.

Through interviews and feedback sessions, primarily with Wakefield District Sight Aid service users, Ruth developed work to allow a variety of ways to engage with it such as contrasting colours, embossed or textured elements and using audio.

The intention is to enhance the viewer experience with particular consideration for blind or sight impaired visitors, however the results make it more engaging for us all.

Ruth Fones's exhibition, Please Touch the Art, will form part of the bi-monthly Wakefield Artwork on Wednesday, March 29.

Ruth said: “By making art more accessible for a particular group of people it naturally makes it more accessible for us all. Don’t we all just want to touch the art?

“I wanted to extend this work further and create paintings or artwork that could be ‘seen’ by a blind person.”

One piece, developed with Manchester-based sound engineer Anna Reed, even has audio feedback so when parts of the painting are touched a sound will play.

The painting, which depicts historic Queen Street in Horbury, features particular landmarks such as the church in the distance. When this is touched the bells of St. Peters and St Leonards Church in Horbury will be heard.

Some of the artwork has been created by members of Wakefield District Sight Aid.

Clips from the interviews highlighting viewers experiences of interacting with art as a blind or visually impaired person will be played throughout the exhibition.

Ruth, an artist and teacher, has continuously observed the subtle variations in our individual perception of colour, light, form and perspective.

Her own diagnosis of a common age-related sight change, triggered a moment of significant reflection for the artist, and uncovered a wider fascination with the differences in our vision which she continues to explore through her art practice.

She has already been exploring sight loss through her work with the sight loss charity Outlookers in Huddersfield where she has created artwork in response to descriptions of sight loss.

The exhibition will take place in Merrie Studios in The Ridings shopping centre, Wakefield, on March 29 from 5pm to 8pm.

More details can be found here: https://www.ruthfonesart.com/exhibitions https://artwalk.org.uk/event/ruth-fones-please-touch-the-art/.

Wakefield Artwalk exhibition encourages visitors to touch interactive art pieces created for blind and partially sighted people