Main objectives. “Couleurs et Création” is a studio of “Centre de la Gabrielle” which welcomes elder intellectual disabilities persons. The artistic creation is in the center of all activities. The process of artistic creation becomes the main vector of the preservation and the development of the physical, intellectual and relational abilities.
Relevance to ENTELIS. Nowadays, Internet and office tools usage in the world is more than necessary. Our Day cCnter “Couleurs & Creations” welcomes with adapted activities ageing people with intellectual disabilities. The activities of the workshop focus on digital art in order to develop computer appetence of the users. Ageing people with mental disabilities are a public distant to ICT due to the nature of their disability, their age and their economic fragility. By facilitating their access to ICTs, the projet aims at reducing this “triple” digital divide.
New knowledge/experience provided. “Couleurs & Creations” provides services throughout the year to twenty ageing people with mental disabilities. After three years of practice, we have seen users significantly progressing in the fiels do TIC and beyond. They mastered better and better software creating more and more accomplished works, with increased autonomy. Indeed, artistic creation through IT tools is particularly suited to the situation of mentally disabled as computer graphics softwares are intuitive and easy to use. Thanks to the work done at “Couleurs & Creations”, users have become more independent using office tools and Internet browsing. This improvement has been possible because we have addressed the use of computers through the Digital Art. Indeed, this approach has helped involving and engaging users of ” Couleurs & Creations” encouraging them to take over the digital tools at their disposal. This type of approach is much more effective in reducing the digital divide of people with mental disabilities than an ordinary computer training.