At the Institute for the Blind there is a piano in every room. There are sculptures and paintings, made by those who have lived in the structure. Many people have received a basic education here, but talents have also blossomed. Perhaps it is also this magic that won over the thousands of visitors who arrived in via Nicolodi in Cagliari for the opening of the Institute on the occasion of the FAI days: «Three hundred in the first hour alone», says the extraordinary commissioner Maurizio Porcelli. «We have opened the doors to make this reality known. Because it is a public body, and as such it must remain open. For years the structure was almost a taboo: people passed by without even knowing what was inside: they didn't believe there could be all this architectural and cultural richness ».
And it is precisely from culture that the Institute for the blind is divided, with events, book presentations, but also singing and piano courses: «It's basic», continues Porcelli. « It is the real glue . Because this is how aggregation is done. And FAI days also serve to let people know that there is a center like this, which provides services and organizes cultural initiatives».
The Istituto dei ciechi was born at the end of the 19th century, the oldest in Italy : over the years it had welcomed blind young people who could not attend school. Like Mariangela, who now lives in Rome: «I entered in 1965, I was four and a half years old, and I left when I was eighteen. At the time there was a division between the men's and women's departments, but I had received a very good education . Openness is good for everyone." Giovanna, who still frequents it, also thinks so: «There is the possibility of hosting people and therefore being able to take advantage of culture as a sensory experience , in the same way as blind and visually impaired people, therefore also using touch ».
Touch is the key to the guided tour: the manufactured and exhibited artefacts are designed to be touched , unlike what happens in any other museum. Among these, also reproductions of monuments of the island , so faithful as to have received the approval of the Ministry of Culture, which has defined them as identical to the original. There is a globe with reliefs and Braille writing, there are three-dimensional tables: everything in the institute's 9,000 square meters is designed and built to measure. This way users were able to get to know the world and learn: one employee even translated entire textbooks, including images, into Braille. A universe that people are discovering thanks to the Fai openings : «These days are growing over the years», explains the Head of the Cagliari delegation, Carla Floris. « People want to know . And so the FAI delegations have also grown. In addition to the salt pans and the Talmone batteries, we have also managed to open new sites to the public, thanks to collaborations. The Institute for the Blind is one of these».
The facility will also be open tomorrow, from 9.30 to 13 and from 16 to 19.