Laurien Booij

In the Netherlands, six out of ten people live with a disability, whether visible or invisible. Yet I still often hear the term “normal people,” as if anyone who differs from that standard automatically falls outside the norm. In practice, this norm continues to shape the design of buildings: spaces are primarily created for people who can easily see, hear, walk, navigate, and anticipate their surroundings. As a result, a large part of society is not considered a startingpoint in the design process, but an exception. Disability is often treated as a problem to solve rather than as a fundamental aspect of human diversity.

Accessibility and inclusivity are frequently approached as technical additions: a ramp at the back of a building or an enlarged wayfinding sign. While functional, these solutions often highlight who does not fit within the original design standard. Accessibility remains an addition rather than an integral part of the design itself.

For me, accessibility and inclusivity go beyond meeting measurable requirements or adding technical solutions. A design only becomes truly inclusive when people with disabilities feel seen and represented within it. This means acknowledging their identities, needs, and ways of experiencing the world from the very first sketch. Such environments accommodate different ways of perceiving and moving, allowing people to participate without having to adapt themselves to the space.

People with disabilities often experience space through multiple senses: sound, touch, smell, sight, and temperature. Engaging multiple senses therefore offers opportunities to create architecture in a more inclusive way. By moving beyond a single dominant mode of perception and valuing different sensory experiences equally, spaces can support diverse ways of engaging with the environment without excluding anyone. 

This approach formed the foundation of a sensory museum on the Dutch island of Ameland. The project reinterprets elements of the island that are inaccessible or not naturally experienced by people with physical disabilities through a variety of sensory experiences. Rather than attempting to solve disabilities, the design takes them as its starting point.

Even on Ameland, many places remain inaccessible or difficult to experience, such as the sea, the dunes, or certain natural landscapes and the feelings they evoke. The museum translates these places into sensory experiences. The sea becomes audible, tangible, and perhaps even perceptible through smell. The landscape is not only seen, but experienced. In this way, Ameland becomes accessible to people for whom the physical environment is notnaturally within reach.

Through this design, I aim to make the sensory qualities of Ameland accessible to as many people as possible. Not by offering one universal experience, but by allowing multiple ways of experiencing the island to coexist. The museum becomes a place that conveys atmosphere and emotion, inviting visitors to discover and connect with the environment in their own way. It moves beyond the purely visual and embraces the intangible—much like disability itself, which is often invisible yet deeply present.

laurienbooij@gmail.com