I am very interested in this subject as well. At The Museum of Modern Art,
we offer a couple of different types of programs.  One, we have a Senior Day
a couple of times a year. On this day, one floor of the museum (the floor
with the opening exhibition) closed to all visitors but seniors. This year
we are having lectures with one being sign-language interpreted. Large print
exhibition brochures will be available, as well additional seating,
wheelchairs, and portable stools. This will be the first Senior Day for me,
so I can't report on previous ones. But, if you are interested, I can let
you know off-list the results from our evaluations.

An off-site program that we offer are teleconference courses for home-bound
individuals. We work with a couple of senior centers and teleconference
university programs for this. For each major exhibition, we create binders
of color reproductions of images. The binders get distributed to seniors
through their organization, a museum lecturer then runs the teleconference
courses.  These last about one hour a week for four weeks. Sometimes, when
the courses are held in the winter (people can not leave their home b/c of
the weather) we hold a little get-together at the museum in the spring.
This is great b/c these people do not have an chance to socialize that
easily and these courses are more of a discussion about art rather than a
lecture.

Hope this helps. I would be interested in getting more information from
anyone else out there doing programs for this audience.

Leah
Leah C. Schroder, Assistant Educator
Programs for Visitors with Disabilities and Special Needs
The Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53rd Street
New York, NY 10019
212.708.9864
212.247.1230 TTY/TDD
http://www.moma.org/docs/visiting/specialneeds/index.htm



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Indianapolis Art Center [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Monday, October 02, 2000 5:03 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      FW: Offsite Senior Programs & Contemporary Art
>
> One question!  - What are you doing in this program?  i.e. hands on -
> informational - research - field trips?????  I might have a few insights,
> but this info would help me to respond.
> Thanks,
>
> gloria carbajal pearson
> The Indianapolis Art Center
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
> Behalf Of Abby Allen
> Sent: Sunday, October 01, 2000 5:52 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Offsite Senior Programs & Contemporary Art
>
>
> Hello All-
>
> I am developing an offsite program that will target senior centers and
> nursing homes for a mid-sized modern & contemporary art museum.  I have
> numerous questions and would be interested in hearing of similar programs
> or from anyone with programs in place or in progress.
>
> My questions include:
>
> *Which museums have particularly successful offsite programs for seniors?*
>
> *What successes have you had with your offsite program for senior centers
> and nursing homes?  What improvements have you had to make?  What
> obstacles
> have you had to overcome?*
>
> *How do you approach conroversial subject matter in contemporary art with
> seniors?  In what context do you place it or do you ignore/exclude it?*
>
> Any answers, advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
>
> Thanks in advance!
>
> Abby Allen Fetter
> Graduate Student
> Seton Hall University
>
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