The Mulvane Art Museum is the first museum in Kansas to offer eyewear by EnChroma, Inc., to visitors with color vision deficiencies, or “color blindness.” Thanks to EnChroma’s Color Accessibility Program, the Mulvane Art Museum’s permanent collection of more than 6,000 works of art will now be more accessible to color-blind visitors when on view. Starting Saturday, September 17, visitors to the Mulvane may check out the glasses free of charge at the first-floor gallery desk.

“We are thrilled to announce the launch of our partnership with the Enchroma Color Accessibility Program,” said the museum’s director, Connie Gibbons. “This technology will further enrich the Mulvane Art Museum’s ongoing efforts to create programs and exhibitions that are accessible to all audiences.”

According to EnChroma, one in 12 men (8%) and one in 200 women (0.5%) are color vision deficient; an estimated 13 million in the United States and 350 million
worldwide. Those with red-green color vision deficiency are estimated to see only about 10% of all hues and shades. As a result, many colors appear dull and
indistinguishable. EnChroma’s patented lens technology is engineered with special optical filters that increase the separation between color channels to help
people with color blindness see colors more vibrantly, clearly and distinctly.

“The mission of EnChroma is to enable those with color vision deficiencies to access more of life’s colorful experiences through our specially engineered eyewear,” said Erik Ritchie, CEO of EnChroma. “We are excited to collaborate with the Mulvane Art Museum to make its colorful works accessible to those with color blindness."

Here are a few sample images from the Mulvane’s collection as they might appear to color-blind viewers.

EnChroma glasses help the color blind see an expanded range of colors more vibrantly, clearly and distinctly. Recent studies published by world-renowned vision scientists at the University of California, Davis and France’s INSERM Stem Cell and Brain Research Institute, and the University of the Incarnate Word, have
demonstrated the effectiveness of EnChroma glasses.

About the Mulvane Art Museum

Founded in 1924, the Mulvane Art Museum offers free admission to a nationally accredited facility that meets the highest standards of the museum profession. With over 9,000 square feet of exhibition space, 4 art classrooms, 2 sculpture gardens, an interactive art laboratory for young visitors and over 6,000 works of art, the Mulvane Art Museum exists to facilitate creative thought and intellectual growth. The Museum's visual art education program provides extensive community outreach to children at after school sites, public and private school classrooms and preschool centers throughout the region. In-house art classes, public lectures, family events and community educational experiences for people of all ages and abilities are also offered. Over 50,000 people visit the Museum and take part in programs each year.

The Mulvane Art Museum houses a permanent collection of more than 6,000 objects from around the world. While international in scope, the Museum’s collection is focused on works by artists from Kansas and the Mountain-Plains region.

https://mulvaneartmuseum.org/

About EnChroma
Based in Berkeley, Calif., EnChroma produces leading-edge eyewear for color blindness and low vision, sold online and through Authorized Retailers worldwide.
Invented in 2010, EnChroma’s patented eyewear combines the latest in color perception, neuroscience and lens innovation to improve the lives of people with color vision deficiency around the world. EnChroma received an SBIR grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It earned the 2016 Tibbetts Award from the U.S.
Small Business Administration in recognition of the firm’s innovative impact on the human experience through technology, and the 2020 Innovation Award in Life
Sciences from the Bay Area’s East Bay Economic Development Alliance. For more information call 510-497-0048 or visit enchroma.com.