Abstract

We live in a scenario marked by a technological environment, from which emerges a new social concept of culture based on access to and enjoyment of information. Nevertheless, access to the various cultural and physical expressions of humankind is not just a product of the New Technologies, since there are particular idiosyncrasies associated with each environment and physical spaces considered as heritage that make necessary the use of more traditional technical solutions to assure maximum accessibility. Accessibility solutions applied to heritage sites must be integrated with their environment, without being aggressive to their preservation or integrity. These solutions seek the goal of bringing the cultural resources to the citizens, especially to those groups with different types of disabilities: blindness, reduced mobility, deafness, etc. Designs seek to make them direct participants in cultural events, changing their role from a passive to a fully active one. This approach turns the heritage site into a fully didactic, interactive area open to all participants. With this objective, this paper presents a study of the state-of-the-art adaptations implemented in different areas of heritage. We have observed access from the perspective of product design, analysing which devices have been put in place, such as instruments for signalling, information support, or tactile paving. We focus our research in two areas considered as World Heritage in Spain, taking significant examples of those distinct categories registered by UNESCO: Natural Heritage and Building Cultural Heritage, and analyzing the implemented designs. This analysis will allow us to identify and understand the solutions applied to deal with the idiosyncrasies of each site, and propose specific design guidelines for achieving cultural access in these enclaves.