Please Touch the Art

Mark your calendars for the opening reception of “Please Touch the Art,” an exhibition that engages all five senses, from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5. Designed with a special focus on visitors and artists who are blind or visually impaired, Please Touch the Art invites everyone to experience art in a new way—especially those of us who’ve had to resist the urge to touch a painting in a museum! Enjoy snacks, meet the artists, and try your hand at fun activities, including the collaborative community art project “Strut Your Crown” with artist Katherine Penny Mitchell.

The exhibition features artwork by Michael Naranjo, a Tewa artist who was blinded and lost the use of his right hand after being injured by a grenade while serving in Vietnam. While recuperating in a military hospital, Naranjo began sculpting using only his left hand and a small piece of modeling clay a hospital volunteer gave him. Michael went on to create world-renowned artwork that draws on Native American traditions and memories of his childhood in New Mexico. His work is displayed around the world, including in the Heard Museum, the White House, and the Vatican.

Additional featured artists include Lily Dickson, a legally blind artist and recent graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, and spoken word poet and blindness advocate Jeanetta Price.

The Center for Creativity is extremely grateful to our partners: the Tulsa Community College Foundation, the Center for Individuals with Physical Challenges, Envision, Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition, Oklahoma School for the Blind, NewView Oklahoma, and Jeri’s House.

Host or Publisher McKeon Center for Creativity