As a Participatory Action Research project stands at the crossroad between scientific investigation, design, and social change, we argue that to answer when and whatthis kind of project can be considered “successful” we have to reflexively analyze a Participatory Design action as a never ending process. The hypothesis discussed in this paper is, thus, that the result of a Participatory Action Research project is more the journey that led to a design than the “results” of a research or the “products” created by the project (them being of material of immaterial substance). In this paper, we will illustrate our point through the description of SmartArt, an action research project whose aim is to reduce inequalities by allowing access to art and culture to Visually Impaired People.

Keywords: Participatory design, ethnography and design, visual impairment, action research