Joseph Rizzo Naudi

WAYS OF NOT SEEING a programme about blind ways of looking at art, comes to BBC Radio 4 on 7th October at 4pm. ------- For decades, art galleries have provided blind visitors with audio descriptions of paintings in their collections. But these descriptions are often only dry, “objective” accounts of the fabulous artworks they aim to represent. Now, a new world of imaginative audio description is emerging, and it promises to transform the experience of art galleries for blind and sighted people alike. Our guide to these new approaches is blind writer Joseph Rizzo Naudi, who takes us on a search for a highly unusual oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age painter, Frans Hals. Join him as this elusive painting is brought to life by a unique group of blind and not-so-blind describers, and experience for yourself a fascinating approach to visual art that depends not so much on what we see, but what we say. Featuring Georgina Kleege, Professor Emeritus of English, University of California, Berkeley; Hannah Thompson, Professor of French and Critical Disability Studies, Royal Holloway, University of London; Maria Oshodi, writer, theatre director and CEO of Extant; Bart Cornelis, Curator of Dutch and Flemish Paintings 1600-1800, The National Gallery; artist and writer Elina Cerla; anthropologist of access Harshadha Balasubramanian; and Katy Tarbard, Gallery Educator, The National Gallery. Writer and presenter: Joseph Rizzo Naudi Producer: Michael Umney Executive Producer: Susan Marling Mixing Engineer: Chris O’Shaugnessy Original poem written and read by Ella Frears Standard Art Description read by Megan McKie-Smith John Berger’s essay “The Hals Mystery” appeared in The Threepenny Review (no. 10, Summer 1982) Joseph Rizzo Naudi is a postgraduate researcher at Royal Holloway, University of London, where his research is funded by the Techne AHRC Doctoral Training Partnership. With special thanks to Margherita di Ceglie, Anne Fay, Karen Elsea and Alexandra Moskalenko at the National Gallery for their support. Programme image shows a detail from Frans Hals, Portrait of a Woman with a Fan, about 1640 © The National Gallery, London.

A whole chapter of fiction in 'Beyond the Visual' published by @uclpress this month. Link in my bio to the Open Access pdf. This writing is very close to my heart. It draws on my first few years using a cane (my first years in the world as a disabled person), an adventure that began in 2019 and spurred a period of intense change and activity... My own chapter aside, 'Beyond the Visual' is a groundbreaking publication which brings together some of the most exciting thought and practice at the intersection of blindness, art and aesthetics. I'm hugely grateful to editors @kenwilderartist and Aaron McPeake for including me alongside some of my blind heroes (Georgina Kleege, @blindspothannah @fkxde @maria_oshodi +++) and for (in the first place) letting me present my work at the @wellcomecollection conference in 2022, an event which led directly to pretty much everything I'm doing now. Thank you to @spreadthewordwriters and @aceagrams for supporting and championing this writing, and much gratitude also to @loremandelli @hannieayter @wren_k @ozrndi @willi_elmos @monicakam @pineapplequeer @rachelmarangozov and the many other writers who gave me their wisdom on these pages and the blog posts they evolved from. For more on Black Cane Diary, check out my linktree for an interview with @rnib radio and @deebeefree brilliant podcast.

Here's GOOSE WOMAN CAT, a piece of short fiction which @stillpointjournal published in May. I wrote it following a descriptive chat with @jamescliffordkent and @blindspothannah in front of James' photograph at @nationalportraitgallery in December last year. You can read or listen to the full text at @stillpointjournal (or linktree in my bio). Big thanks to Still Point for publishing it, in particular @willi_elmos , and to @jamescliffordkent and Cary for a beautiful collaboration. _______ I wrote this piece as part of my Techne-funded PhD work at @rhulcreativewriting @rhul_cvc , where I'm researching fiction, artwork description and blindness. 'Goose Woman Cat' was longlisted for the 2025 Ivan Juritz Prize @ivanjuritzprize and won first place in the Royal National Institute of Blind People @rnib & King’s College London's @kings_college_london 2025 writing competition for blind and partially blind writers. Credit: Written and performed by Joseph Rizzo Naudi, after James Clifford Kent’s photograph “Cary, Axiuli & Haytoo at home in San Leopoldo, Havana, Cuba”, part of the series "¡No hay más na’!" (There's Nothing Left, 2022–). The text is based on a collaborative discussion held on 10 December 2024 at the National Portrait Gallery in London, involving James Clifford Kent, Hannah Thompson and Joseph Rizzo Naudi—all members of the Centre for Visual Cultures at Royal Holloway, University of London. Published on Still Point, May 2025.

At @theremotebody we are pleased to present Time:Distance (2012) by artist filmmaker Holly Antrum @holly___antrum . We will be screening this film online and sharing additional materials developed by our collaboration throughout March. “Through skirting her mother’s chronic fatigue, the filmmaker suggests a bodily sense of observed duration and distance through the use of a wind- up camera. The film oscillates between tapestry-like detail and abstraction, where analogue and digital sub-clips intersect and imitate each other to portray a playfully dream-like episode of being. Collaging fragmented communications, place, and presence exchanged while filming in a rural, hybrid, England – home is where the body is both sick and ecstatic; is sheltered; spiritualised; and its energy measured. Decimal accuracy blurs and merges with familial physicality and embodied time – sun and moon.” Time:Distance Super 16mm on SD 11.30 mins 2012 Link in bio to subscribe to view the film from next week and hear the new audio description commissioned by the remote body. Our new audio description has been scripted in collaboration with Joseph Rizzo Naudi @joeraudi @descript.art , the filmmaker and Char Heather @charheatherr The creative description process led by Joseph, has been turned into a further creative audio description (CAD) and text written by Gayathiri Kamalakanathan @unembarrassable and produced by DesCript. Look out for their text, to be published in @stillpointjournal soon and subsequently on the remote body newsletter. This project has been supported by the Arts Council National Lottery Fund. Image description: on a lush green background that lightens and darkens amorphousoy at the corners white text reads: Holly Antrum's Time:Distance screening remotely throughout March with new audio description, commissioned by the remote body, written with DesCript' Subscribe to our newsletter (paid or free) to receive the link!' Below the text the Arts Council logo reads 'suppoered using public funding by Arts Council England's in white text. #theremotebody #hollyantrum #artistmovingimage #luxcollection #creativeaudiodescription

Upgrade Yourself Monthly: Access as a Creative Catalyst ✨ This December, we’re reimagining accessibility as a spark for creativity with Shape Arts’ Elinor Hayes and blind writer Joseph Rizzo Naudi. Join us for an interactive session exploring how access can be more than a practical consideration - it can be a creative framework that opens up new ways to collaborate, design, and tell stories across disciplines. Expect hands-on activities, new perspectives, and real talk on how access can drive innovation and shape your creative process. Featuring: 💡 Elinor Hayes, Creative Producer at Shape Arts, on curating with access at the core 🎧 Joseph Rizzo Naudi, leading a hands-on audio description workshop using language, blindness + imagination 🥗 Free food + drinks from @butchsalads 🎟️ Bonus: Every attendee gets a free ticket to Wayne McGregor: Infinite Bodies - a groundbreaking exhibition celebrating one of the UK’s most visionary choreographers 📅 3 December, 6–9pm 📍 The Exchange, New Wing 👥 For 18–30-year-olds 🕙 Sign up by 10am, Tuesday 18 November via the link in bio - spaces are limited! Step Inside, Think Outside

📣 SHARING INGREDIENTS – A Free Multidisciplinary Exhibition is coming to Cubitt Gallery this June! 🎉 How does food shape who we are? What kind of food are you made of? This interactive exhibition weaves together recipes from memory, personal writings, photography, audio, and collective reflections to explore the powerful connections between body, food, and heritage. 📍 Cubitt Gallery, London 📅 June 20–22, 12–6pm 🎟️ Free Entry But that’s not all — we’ve got beautiful activities happening alongside the exhibition: 👉 Friday 20th, 4pm – Collaborative Description Workshop Guided by blind writer Joseph Rizzo Naudi join us to explore a collaborative description of the Sharing Ingredients exhibition. We will draw on our individual sensory experiences of the space to co-create a self contained, language-based experience of the artworks, while also enjoying some coffee & dessert. No prep needed — participants who describe themselves as blind or visually impaired are especially welcome. Non-blind people or those who identify as visually-dependent also welcome. (Free) 👉 Saturday 21st – Eating Stories Workshop A deeper dive into storytelling, memory, and food. This special session is ticketed, limited-capacity, and designed to nourish both body and imagination. (Booking essential – link in bio!) Come for the art, stay for the connection 🍊✨ Proudly supported by @aceagrams Curated by @louisecarpenedo Image Description: A promotional poster for a community workshop. At the top, a photograph shows a group of diverse people sitting around a long table in a brightly lit room, engaged in conversation and writing. A smiling facilitator stands at the end of the table, addressing the group. Underneath this, another photograph shows a close-up of a hand writing on red paper with a pen. The handwritten note appears to express gratitude. #SharingIngredients #FoodStories #IdentityThroughFood #LondonEvents #MultisensoryArt #CubittGallery #CommunityExhibition #FoodAndMemory #SensoryArt #WorkshopsLondon #freeworkshop #coffeeanddessert #appliedtheatre #appliedtheatrepractitioner

Some moments from our recent Artwork Description Workshop led by Joseph Rizzo Naudi. Over two inspiring hours, we explored our current exhibition Even in the Dark through non-visual approaches to art. Participants were invited to engage with the works using their own sensory perspectives, resulting in rich, collaborative, and inclusive descriptions. The workshop was designed to be especially suitable for participants who are blind or visually impaired, and it marked an important step in our ongoing efforts to make the gallery more accessible and responsive to different communities. As staff, we came away with new insights and a deeper understanding. We’re excited to keep learning and growing. To find out about upcoming workshops and events, visit:

Rolling out the first of ALL’s online workshops! This event also introduces ALL collaborator Joseph Rizzo Naudi, a blind writer and facilitator based in London, United Kingdom. Guided by Joseph, participants will explore collaborative, blindness-led description of archival images and artworks. During the two-hour workshop, we will co-create a new, self-contained, language-based artwork, and reflect on experimental image description processes and practices. Joseph says: ‘Preparation heavily discouraged. Come as you are. Non-blind people or those who identify as visually-dependent also welcome. Wear what you like. BYOB (bring your own body).’ Monday 26th May 2025 7–9pm (Naarm/AEST) 10am–12pm (London/BST) Book now at: /archives-of-lunacy (or hit the Linktree in our bio) Speaking of bios …  Joseph Rizzo Naudi is a blind writer and facilitator based in London, United Kingdom. He is a Techne postgraduate researcher at Royal Holloway, University of London, where he is exploring artwork description, fiction technique and blindness as a generative approach. Joseph is co-founder of DesCript (@descript.art ), which uses blind approaches to create multimodal artworks that describe and document exhibitions. His writing has been supported by Arts Council England, the Arts & Humanities Research Council and Spread The Word’s London Writers Awards. More at . Oh – and he’s at @joeraudi . Hi Joe! Access Lab & Library is supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria. #creativestate @creative_vic

🎉 New commissions for writers! Did you know that next year is our 30th Anniversary? We don’t know where the time has gone either! As part of the celebration, we are launching two commissions for new writing. We’re thrilled to announce that the first of these is the #EmergingWriterCommissions. Open to underrepresented writers of poetry, fiction or narrative non-fiction who are based in London are 18+, the commissions offer a £2,000 commission fee, 3 sessions with a mentor, one-to-one development, publication and a chance to showcase your work at #DeptfordLiteratureFestival. One of the commissions will be for a Lewisham based writer. The judges are Joelle Taylor (@JTaylorTrash ) and Olumide Popoola (@olumide_popoola_writer ). Applications close on 7 October: .uk/projects/emerging-writer-commissions or click on the link in our bio. The #EmergingWriterCommissions are possible thanks to the generous support of @CockayneFoundation and @london_cf . (Information available in text, audio and BSL video formats.) Our second set of commissions is the #DeafandDisabledWriterCommissions. These aim to showcase new work by three London-based deaf and disabled writers, and provide a developmental and profile-raising opportunity. They will be judged by Ayesha Chouglay (@weirdbutinteresting ) and Joe Rizzo Naudi (@JoeRaudi ). To enter, you’ll need to be a writer of poetry, fiction, narrative non-fiction or writing for performance. Applications close on 7 October: .uk/projects/deaf-and-disabled-writer-commissions/ or click on the link in our bio. (Information available in text, audio and BSL video formats.) IMAGE ID: A photo collage featuring black and white photos of the judges of both writing commissions. On the top row, from left to right are Olumide Popoola and Joelle Taylor. On the bottom row, from left to right are Ayesha Chouglay and Joe Rizzo Naudi.

AN EXHIBITION OF SIX ARTWORKS WHICH WILL NOT BE EXHIBITED For ENSEMBLE, which opens this Thursday, I wrote & recorded audio descriptions of some fantastic artworks which I haven't seen (and neither will you). How? With the help of @autumn_sharkey @timnaf1 @jencalleja_ @nicole_clif @hannieayter @sashagalitzine & @ellafrears FAQ - Will the artworks themselves be in the exhibition? No. - Photos of them? No. - Just their audio descriptions? Exactly. Six artworks, two descriptions per artwork: one created by the artwork's artist; one created using a collaborative description method. Come listen to them/read them/see them signed. And if you'd like to have a go at the collaborative description process yourself, come to one of our workshops (see the website below) ENSEMBLE /exhibitions2324ensemble (also in my bio) Curated by @hettiejames_ & @stephuaf Opening Night: Thursday 2nd May 2024 Exhibition dates: 2nd - 26th May 2024 Address: APT Gallery, Deptford, SE8 4SA Funded by Arts Council England "Ensemble explores creative Audio Description as a collaborative art form and accessible communication tool, challenging audiences to experience artworks with their minds in an audio-based group exhibition, supported by Arts Council England." Participating artists: @louiseashcroft1 @cashaspeek @tbirchartist @francottell @colinlievens , Aaron McPeake. Independent artwork descriptions produced by Collective Agency, written by Joe Rizzo Naudi, edited by Sasha Galitzine, after conversations with Jen Calleja, Nicole Clif, Timna Fibert, Ella Frears, Annie Hayter and Autumn Sharkey. [ID 1: Exhibition title and info presented from top left in red lettering on a white background surrounded by a pale grey border] [ID 2: Two columns of contributing artists' names presented from top left in red lettering on a white background surrounded by a pale grey border]

Deptford Literature Festival 15/16 March 2024. 1: poet James Wilkes & audio magician Michael Umney plumbing the creek with a hydrophone for the Sounding Deptford project. They stand on a girdered footbridge overlooking rippled waters. 2: Deptford Literature Festival '24 magazine, with writings by @cmmn_stance , Aliya Gulamani, @courtneyconradpoetry , @jodyb_21 & me. 3. Still from Yaz Nin's Disabled Writers Commission film, "From PT". A view from a window showing a twilight London cityscape and a leafy tree branch silhouetted against a peachy blue sky. The subtitle reads: you are not a case number. Thank you a hundred times to @spreadthewordwriters for organising an incredible festival. There was so, so much & I only wish it went on longer so I could have gone to more events. Shout out to @tice.cin , @hannieayter et al for the soft soft opening spectacular. Deptford felt so warm. A place of words & friends, and soon-to-be friends. The highlight for me was the Disabled Writers Commission event, where @cinejamographer , Yaz Nin & *Ample Collective (@sofialyall & Jacqueline Ennis Cole) hit us with rich, multimodal texts & artworks (essay, poetry, fiction, film, audio, captions, braille, BSL). Inclusive, collaborative, inventive, radical. Funders & rich people: if you want creative genius, give money to disabled people. I was lucky to host this event and judge the commission open call with the fantastic @weirdbutinteresting . I learned so much. Thank you to the commission mentors & to filmmaker/artist/beloved brother Louis Rizzo-Naudi for facilitating these artworks, and again to @spreadthewordwriters for funding & platforming these brilliant writers. Check my profile for links to the Sounding Deptford audio-poem-map project, the festival magazine, and the Disabled Writers Commissions (where you can watch, read, listen to the three commissions).

Prints 1 & 2 from Sabīne Šnē's 445 Million Years Ago to Today artwork with description audio and text by @joeraudi From @sabinesne solo show @tobeweneedtoknowtheriver curated by @ana11sva August 23rd - 29th 2023 @lotprojects 2 Broadway Market Mews E8 4TS Artwork: digital drawing mounted on honeycomb Descriptions: synthetic voices, microcassette #audiodescription #access #inclusion #accessisart