Through the Arts

From paintings to sculptures to stained glass, art was everywhere in the Middle Ages and is still a large part of our current society. It can be seen in people's houses, to showcases in large-format museums such as the Louvre and the MET. One concept that was never really touched upon in many art forms was disability. It was either to depict a person being healed of their issues or to depict the person with a disability in a negative light. Much of this art has been created by individuals who themselves are not disabled, leading to a misrepresentation of disability across many generations and time periods.  In situations like this, the person portrayed with the disability is used as a visual object to marvel at, rather than a person you are able to connect with. Whether the person depicted had visible or invisible disabilities they were dramatically and poorly underrepresented across all mediums in the art community.

Exhibition Guide: Through the Arts