2024 ACTivate Resident
Amber Pearcy has resided in Boston since 2008. She works in the field of braille production, as well as arts accessibility. She has been a braille proofreader and transcriber for 11 years. In addition to her work providing braille materials to individuals of all ages, Amber is a consultant to arts organizations wishing to provide greater access for visitors and audiences who are blind/low vision. She provides staff and volunteer trainings to promote greater awareness and sensitivity of people with disabilities, as well as advises on issues including audio description, touch tours, and digital accessibility. She holds a Masters of Science in arts administration from Boston University, and she is certified in literary braille transcription and proofreading by the Library of Congress.
Amber has recently returned to her roots as a piano player after a hiatus of many years. As a child, she studied classical piano for ten years. However, upon resuming her piano playing in 2020, she has begun learning to play and improvise in the style of jazz.
Amber is grateful to both the Boston center for the Arts (BCA) and ponnapa prakkamakul for giving her this opportunity to explore greater creativity through music and visual/tactile art. For this Activate Residency at the BCA, Amber and ponnapa — along with special guest collaborator, trumpeter and composer Wayne Pearcy — will explore the meaning of home and community through the creation of original music and an original mural. This exploration will build on Amber and Ponnapa’s shared interest in making art accessible to everyone through multi-sensory engagement.