DESIGN AND DISABILITY
- ARTISTIC HUB MAGAZINE
- 7 days ago
- 3 min read
Design That Sees People
At the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, an exhibition invites visitors to see design through a different lens. Design and Disability, currently on display at the Porter Gallery from June 7, 2025, to February 15, 2026, brings together more than 170 works that speak of resilience, imagination, and the power of experience.
At its heart are people who see design not as a response to limitation but as a form of expression and belonging. Each object tells a story of life, of minds and bodies that have learned to reimagine the world. Curator Natalie Kane has shaped the exhibition with rare warmth and sensitivity, presenting design as culture, a space that belongs to everyone.
The first part of the exhibition celebrates self-expression in all its forms. Among the highlights are adaptive garments by artist Sky Cubacub, created to honor the diversity of bodies and identities; a hand-sewn carnival costume by designer Maya Scarlette, inspired by Botticelli’s Birth of Venus; and a photograph by Marvel Harris that explores identity, gender, and freedom. On the wall hangs the 2023 issue of British Vogue, dedicated to inclusive fashion, a landmark edition that marked a turning point in how the fashion industry understands representation.
In the following rooms, innovation appears as an act of empathy and necessity. The Touchstream keyboard, designed by Wayne Westerman to ease chronic hand pain, later inspired the touchscreen technology used in the iPhone. The adaptive Xbox controller by Microsoft was developed in collaboration with players with limited mobility. A series of photographs by Simon Way documents the Jaipur Foot project in India, where affordable prosthetics are made for millions of people. Nearby, the work of Cindy Wack Garni quietly emerges from everyday life, through simple solutions that restore independence and dignity.
The final section explores the spaces where art, the body, and community meet. Visitors can rest on a blue bench by artist Finnegan Shannon bearing the question “Do you want us here or not?”, experience the red Squeeze Chaise Longue by Wendy Jacob, developed with scientist Temple Grandin, and discover Helen Stratford’s installation that celebrates rest and redefines how public space can reflect the rhythm of real life.
Images © Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Photos by Isobel Greenhalgh. Installation views of “Design and Disability,” V&A South Kensington.
The entire exhibition has been designed for accessibility. Floors and walls are tactile, visual contrasts are clear, and there are audio guides, sign language interpretation, and quiet areas for rest. In the final room, an installation by artist Seo Hye Lee translates sound into emotion, creating a moment that is felt rather than heard.
Design and Disability tells a story of creativity that grows from understanding and shared humanity. It honors people who have made the world more accessible precisely because they have shaped it in their own way. It is a celebration of design that speaks not about objects but about the people behind them.
The exhibition has been supported by the Oak Foundation and remains open until February 15, 2026, at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
