I’d been to the Sydney Community Group presenting on the Tessitura Network Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion Community Advisory Committee (TNDEAICAC for short) activities with my pal and co-conspirator, Ivana. I don’t mind public speaking but without knowing the setup or a run through of the tech it can be a bit dysregulating, and so along with the chaos of post event socialising, I was a bit scattered. On the way out I came across a sign in a looping digital screen about sensory/autistic friendly mornings at the Australian Museum (AM), and intriguingly it wasn’t solely directed at parents and children. That in itself created a busy chain of thought: “I wonder what the process was to get this approved”; “How do they adapt the space and how broad are the accommodations?''; “How do I change careers to chat show host so I can invite someone to talk about this?'' After playing mental Frogger with my thoughts, I looked up their accessibility page online.
Quiet times The Museum opens at 10am which is generally when the Museum is at its quietest. School term is quieter unless there are a lot of school students booked in. School holidays and rainy days can be very busy. The AM also runs a series of Early Birds Access Mornings to provide a reduced-sensory, relaxed and supportive environment for visitors on the autism spectrum or those who have other access requirements. Visitors, together with their family and friends, can explore the AM before it opens to the general public at their own pace and without all the noise, crowds and other high sensory aspects of visiting a museum. View our What's on calendar for program and exhibition details. AM Visual Story The AM Visual Story is a guide for visitors on the autism spectrum and those with sensory sensitivities to prepare for their visit.
The Museum opens at 10am which is generally when the Museum is at its quietest. School term is quieter unless there are a lot of school students booked in.
School holidays and rainy days can be very busy.
The AM also runs a series of Early Birds Access Mornings to provide a reduced-sensory, relaxed and supportive environment for visitors on the autism spectrum or those who have other access requirements. Visitors, together with their family and friends, can explore the AM before it opens to the general public at their own pace and without all the noise, crowds and other high sensory aspects of visiting a museum.
View our What's on calendar for program and exhibition details.
The AM Visual Story is a guide for visitors on the autism spectrum and those with sensory sensitivities to prepare for their visit.
I left it at that as work was filling up my seven days and nights, and, as usual, other shiny things got in the way.
Follow Up Trip
Almost a year later, at the Database Administrators monthly meetup, we talked about the Australian Museums upcoming autistic night where they open up with better lighting and sound. “Night at the Museum” is a regular night, and this one happened to be specifically curated for my kind of crowd.
With the encouragement of the AM Tessitura team I booked a ticket for a slot I could make after work and went along. Suffice to say it was remarkable. I encountered identity first language, friendly autistic & neurodivergent staff, and long dissertations by a squid expert, to name a few. (Well the last bit is business as usual, but a museum is basically a government sponsored infodump.) In fact, the Australian Museum has always appealed to me as a kind of autistic wonderland, from my childhood where the front doors felt like the back of a wardrobe to Narnia, to my start at university where, on a weekend, I’d frugally walk an hour into the city and meander the free general collection, treating it as a “daiye spa” to recenter after a week of people.
It's outrageous how much inclusion and belonging was there for the taking! Not a blue puzzle piece anywhere. No one's eyes were rolled when someone answered in depth, no looking at a sunflower lanyard and speaking louder and slower in a baby voice. I got a glimpse at what the world might be like if the tables were reversed and the majority of people were neurodivergent. And to be honest it was both exciting and calm.
Events like these are incredibly impactful. It's something that I'm trying to get up at my organisation and the feedback that my Front of House team get directly and through post-show and box-office feedback regularly. Respect, accommodation and representation goes a long way in marginalised communities. And it was lovely to feel like there was a community in person where usually are best online. I'm really keen to hear how other orgs are looking access. Let me know how you are going and what those challenges are.