When an Art Historian and a Linguist Meet: Museum Audio Description Theory, Practice and Education, Discussed from Different Perspectives

The paper presents an interdisciplinary dialogue in which audio description of art is discussed from two different perspectives: the point of view of an art historian and that of a translation educator and scholar. Merging the latter’s translation teaching experience, AD research results’ analysis and translation theory with the former’s reflections on the language of art history, the importance of domain-specific knowledge and the awareness of artworks’ perception by the blind and visually impaired leads the authors to joint conclusions. They pertain to not only the possible ways of educating future audio describers and enhancing interdisciplinary cooperation, but also the role of museums and audio describers in translating art and communicating cultural heritage to all people, the blind, the visually impaired and the sighted alike, in clear, jargon-free but association-loaded language.