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Architecture faculty at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are leading innovative work to make architectural education more accessible for blind and low-vision students—rethinking how design is taught, communicated, and experienced. Professors John Clark and Hugh Swiatek are collaborating with architecture student Daniel Bein to develop new workflows, tactile tools, and AI-assisted technologies that move beyond the field’s traditionally visual focus and embrace architecture as a fundamentally multisensory discipline.
From tactile drawings and 3D-printed models to text-based design commands and experimental AI image descriptions, this work is opening new pathways for inclusive studio learning and professional practice. The project not only supports Bein’s success in design studios, but also points toward a more equitable future for architectural education. Read the full article to learn how this research is reshaping design pedagogy—and highlighting the School of Architecture’s leadership in accessibility, innovation, and inclusive excellence: Illinois architecture professors‘ project aims to make architecture education accessible to blind students
