Sensory Friendly Viewing of GLEAM: Art in a New Light at Olbrich Gardens

Come walk through Olbrich Botanical Gardens at night and enjoy light installations from artists across the country as we explore this year’s GLEAM experience. Engage your senses in a light and sound experience as you walk this year’s path of exhibits. 

Join the Autism Society of South Central Wisconsin for a Sensory Friendly Viewing of GLEAM on Thursday, September 19, 2024 at 7pm. Timed ticket entry for the sensory friendly viewing is from 7-7:30 pm only. We would like to thank Olbrich Botanical Gardens for arranging the special sensory friendly viewing time for the evening. Please note the general public viewing time starts at 7:30 pm. 

Come and explore at your leisure through all of the art installations in this year’s exhibit. Learn more about the event and special accommodations. Please allow an hour to an hour and a half to walk through all the installations.  Map of this year’s installation with additional information about each exhibit 

“Take a walk through a dream – GLEAM envelopes the senses, engaging and exciting the imagination. Escape the day to day and enter a third space, a place for creative interaction and dynamic play. Light installation artists from far and wide transform the Gardens into an illuminated adventure. Expect appearances from “wild animals”, create a self-portrait with time lapse technology, re-live childhood memories getting lost in the corn and wander through a kaleidoscope of light. Come bathe in the shine and enjoy art in the Garden in a whole new light.”

Here is the link to our GLEAM social story.

PARKING

Limited parking available in the lot adjacent to the Bolz Conservatory. Check out the alternative parking map for additional options provided by Olbrich.

TICKETS

Every member of your group needs a ticket to enter. Prices are  $16/general admission (age 13 and older), $8 (child age 6-12), FREE (child age 5 and under). Purchase sensory friendly viewing tickets here. 

*Tickets are timed entry every 30 minutes, you may not enter before your ticket time, but will still be able to enter if you do not arrive within your 30 minute ticket window. However, the sensory friendly viewing entry time is 7-7:30pm. A reminder that tickets are on a first come first serve basis, they go quickly, and must be purchased in advance. 

If you need assistance, please bring a support person with you.

A few notes about GLEAM: 

1) The walking path for GLEAM is very well marked and there are physical boundaries in place to keep you from going the wrong way. As it got later into the night, the path did get a little dark in areas. So having a flashlight, or using the flashlight on your phone might come in handy!
2) For those with sensitive hearing, noise-canceling headphones might come in handy! Music is playing throughout the exhibit and you can also hear different nature sounds around the garden (water, bugs, etc.)
3) The path has clear wheelchair-accessible routes that are labeled.
4) There are a few interactive exhibits that could lead to more sensory-overwhelm (but may be VERY exciting for sensory seekers!). There are alternative paths that let you skip these events or watch them from a distance, with volunteers at each point to give you an idea of what you might experience during the interactive portion (so you can make the best decision!).
5) The final exhibit has four interactive balls that you can yell into and hear your voice echoed across the garden. They do flash when being engaged with. However, walking by them is completely optional. You can choose to take the other path back to the building and bypass them all together.
6) Volunteers are easy to identify around the path! They are wearing glow-in-the-dark bracelets and/or necklaces!