AccessAbility

In cooperation with Swedish Institute and Danish Culture Center

Date： 2021.9.25-10.24

Artists: CONG Yan    Markus Marcetic

Organizer: InterCulture

Co-organizers: Danish Cultural Center     Swedish Institute

Sponsor: MAXHUB    Bon Parfumeur Paris

Collaboration with: Universal Fashion Lab (UFL)    Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (BIFT)

Foreword：

From 25 September to 24 October 2021, the exhibition "AccessAbility" will be brought to InterCulture's space in Guangzhou's Huangpu Ancient Port. AccessAbility portrays 26 individuals from various backgrounds and walks of life; 26 people whose hopes, desires, and dreams are shared with the visitors of this exhibition; 26 people who have different types of disabilities but who all stand for themselves, not for their disability. Their common message is that impairment does not determine who you are.

The exhibition will also display textiles developed by Universal Fashion Lab (UFL) of the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (BIFT), as well as wheelchairs with different functions, in order to enhance public understanding of the needs of people with disabilities.

Why is the title called "AccessAbility"? In the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the term "accessibility", instead of "barrier-free", indicates that every individual is capable of integrating into society in a meaningful and equal way. In the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the slogan "Leave no one behind" is the central promise that each UN member undertakes to work towards closing the gaps of inequality by combating discrimination and by incorporating accessibility in everyday life.

This project intends to visualize that all individuals can contribute to a more diverse and equal society.  The 26 portrays cannot tell the whole story about the lives of some 90 million people with disabilities in China, nor the 70,000 people registered as having disabilities in Sweden. But their voices tell us that there is more that unites us than divides us.

With the exhibition of these 26 portraits, and a series of interactive side events, InterCulture wants to convey that we are one of a kind; we all want a life in dignity, in a world that treats all of us fairly and equally. This fight has not yet been won. But if arts give everyone the same chance to be seen and heard, this seems to be a step in the right direction.

AccessAbility is a co-production between the Swedish Institute, the Danish Cultural Centre and InterCulture. Portraits were captured by Swedish photographer and filmmaker Markus Marcetic, and by the independent Beijing-based photographer CONG Yan.

 

CONG Yan

自由摄影师，常驻北京，主要关注女性议题、城乡发展和社会议题。作品曾在多家中外媒体上发表。

 

Markus Marcetic

瑞典摄影师兼电影制作人，在媒体领域钻研多年，涉猎广泛，主要专注于视觉传达。

 

UFL, BFLT

北服无障碍服装研究中心聚焦残障人士对无障碍服装服饰的需求，综合人体工学、材料学、心理学，运动医学以及设计学科等诸多领域，在无障碍产品研发及标准化领域有所突破。

Zhang Jian, a special wheelchair runner who has been active in the Marathon for years. Since 2012, Zhang Jian has "run" 83 marathons. He said that the "wheelchair" was his running shoes. Running not only makes him stronger, but also his way of showing his sense of existence, allowing the disabled to be seen and integrated into society. He will present in the opening ceremony, and to tell about his life as a runner.

Short Film: An Unusually Ordinary Day

This film is about a reversal issue of social identity, where "abnormal" turns to "normal", and "normal" turns to "abnormal".

The film represents how people who are classified as "abnormal" under another social standard are subject to explicit or invisible rejection in every aspect of life.

Through the reversal of the social identities of the able-bodied people and the disabled people, to reflect on the world that has been standardized by the able-bodied people. The problems faced by disabled people are physical obstacles in society and negative attitudes that regard them as alternatives, rather than "disability" itself being a problem. Disability may be an "abnormal" label constructed by acquired nature.

This film is based on reality and is produced through interviews with people who have different physical and mental disabilities.

Meanwhile, we also invited some people and groups full of legendary experience to share stories at the opening ceremony, show the distinct characteristics of people and their individuality.