The project

According to the Institut Pasteur, nearly 75 million people around the world live with autism. If we consider all forms of neurodivergent disorders, that represents around 15 to 20 percent of the world’s population. 

Considering the number of people who are affected by this, it is society’s responsibility to facilitate access to public resources and culture. In 2021, the non-profit organisation FRAME, for French American Museum Exchange, published a guide to help people with autism access museums. Museums in the city of Nancy are now part of FRAME and are working more than ever to guarantee access to art for everyone.

How can museums be made more accessible? 

During the working sessions in the Charly Lab, one of several fab labs in Nancy, you will discover the « Ecole de Nancy » school of art. This style, developed at the beginning of the 20th century, inspired many artists, architects, filmmakers, and even video games. The main goal of these sessions is to prototype a physical game for people with disabilities. Working in teams, you will create a game playable inside a museum. The game created will be a kind of escape game where the players solve puzzles and mechanics while going back and forth from one piece of art to another. 

You will learn to use all sorts of technologies to build your game: 3D scanning and printing technologies, laser cutting, augmented and virtual realities, and many more. Each session will be about how to materialise a concept you have in mind, from the idea to the physical object in your hand. You will be helped by French students and the Charly Lab personnel to help you digitally and physically build around your game mechanics. From crafting a wooden box to 3D printing miniature objects, while another team prints cards and a board game, you will have access to multiple tools to iterate, try and test in an innovative open space.

To help you connect with your game’s target audience, you’ll attend a conference by an expert in the field, taking place in another fab lab inside a church, a space dedicated to creating engaging experiences for people with intellectual disability. You will also meet some of the beta testers of your game there.