Accessibility and social responsibility

One of the Museo’s functions, in addition to conserving the cultural heritage, is to spread knowledge; to do so, both physical and sensorial access conditions must be facilitated for the most varied public possible. Moreover, nowadays museums take on a social role, making them key players in the achievement of progress, development and social harmony through culture.

With the objective of making museum institutions accessible and ensuring they respond to the needs of all citizens, the Minister for Culture is promoting the Making Museums+Social Plan

One of the first fields of action contemplated by the plan, and one to which the Museo is particularly committed, is accessibility.

In terms of physical accessibility, the Museo del Traje building meets all the essential requirements: the Museo’s Permanent Exhibition and the majority of the spaces for public use are located on the same floor, without any type of floor level differences and they are also sufficiently spacious.

Nevertheless, the conservation needs of the type of pieces the museum houses, fabrics and garments, require a dim level of room lighting making it quite difficult to perceive the pieces, particularly for those with some sort of vision disability. The Multisensorial Education Area exists to ensure that all people without exception can gain knowledge of the collections, participate in and enjoy the Museo.

In addition, the Museo has devices, including T-coils and sound amplifiers, to facilitate access to the information and to allow people with hearing disabilities to participate in the Museo activities.

On the other hand, from the outset the Museo has always offered a very broad programme of activities to guarantee access to its cultural services and participation in the same by all people. In this sense, one of the lines worked on is integration and accessibility for people with special needs.

Activities for people with vision disability

• Guided tours The Evolution of the Silhouette and The World of Fabrics
• Bobbin lace workshops for people with vision disabilities
• Guided tour Touching History
• Cycle of historical figures (guided tour also aimed at people with vision disabilities)
• Activities on the International Day of Disabled Persons

Activities for people with hearing disabilities

• Visit to the Permanent Exhibition with an LSE interpreter

Special Education

• Tailoring DreamsSalto de línea This programme focuses on fostering participants’ curiosity and interest in the Museo’s collections and the customs and ways of life in times gone by. The proposal offered by the Museo combines storytelling and practical workshops, promoting teamwork and a positive outlook.

A public that is little represented in Museums

This is another area of application to bring the Museo close to everyone. The Museo has been developing a programme aimed at people over 65 almost since its foundation, as well as activities for adolescents to participate in.

• Workshops for the elderly
• Workshops for adolescents

Attention to groups of people in vulnerable social situations

• One Size Fits All Workshop

One Size Fits All is a corporal-emotional identity workshop that uses artistic expression and creativity as a form of therapy and prevention of eating disorders. This project was developed in the Museo del Traje in the months of February to June 2018.

• Wabi-sabi Project

Wabi-Sabi… is an art far removed from grandeur, regularity or a desire for eternity. It aims to exalt the intensity of expression. Taking its inspiration from this Japanese philosophy, this art workshop was created in 2018 with the support of the Fundación Amanecer, an entity founded to provide support and opportunities to people with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families.

• Rips and Seams Workshop

Art therapy project for the treatment and prevention of drug addictions, developed over the course of 2016. This initiative forms part of the Red Cross programme Hooked on Art. Its philosophy revolves around the idea of artistic expression as an effective therapeutic tool in the treatment and prevention of drug addictions. This Project communicates a close and humanised view of people suffering this disease to society, and makes these people participants of the same.

Visualisation of the gender perspective

The gender perspective is present throughout all the actions undertaken in the Museo and is one of its priority lines of action:

• Women Who Change the World

Joint programme with women’s’ associations for visits to the Permanent Exhibition: taking clothing as the common thread, and bearing in mind the special characteristics of these women in a particularly vulnerable life-stage, these visits deal with specific contents that attract and enrich them (covering the importance of image -self-esteem, etc., the social role, the condition of the woman in history and in our own society) so that apart from feeling stimulated, they enjoy our centre and go so far as to consider the Museo a place of learning and debate, open to all.

• Guided tour Women, fashion and society
• Activities to celebrate International Women’s Day
• La Vie en Rose Conference. Gender and identity through fashion

The Museum, a model of responsible environmental management

• Conference with sessions on sustainable fashion
• Conference dedicated to The Community

Culture, and therefore, Museums, are an appropriate environment to foster equality, diversity and sustainability.