The Korea Developmental Disability Culture and Arts Association ArtWeCan (CEO Kim Min-jung) announced on the 29th that it will host a "Noon Concert" series featuring artists with developmental disabilities, starting May 6 in celebration of Family Month. The concerts will take place over four sessions at Cafe "I Got Everything," which the association operates on the third floor of the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History near Gwanghwamun Square in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
Now in its second year, Cafe I Got Everything's "Noon Concert" features artists with developmental disabilities affiliated with ArtWeCan. The schedule includes ▲ "Family Month Concert" on May 6 at 12:30 p.m. ▲ "Korean Traditional Music Concert" on June 5 at 12:30 p.m. ▲ "Liberation Day Commemoration Concert" on August 12 at 12:30 p.m. ▲ "Autumn Concert" on September 16 at 12:30 p.m. Admission is free.
Each performance features diverse programs tailored to the season and theme, offering audiences a unique cultural experience through collaborations between artists with developmental disabilities and non-disabled musicians. Their music goes beyond mere performance, transforming "difference" into "uniqueness" and delivering deep resonance and emotion to audiences.
"Gwanghwamun is a symbolic space where modernity and tradition coexist, and a concert held here with a full view of Gyeongbokgung carries an especially meaningful significance," an ArtWeCan official said. "The Noon Concert aims to expand the value of this venue beyond a simple cafe space into an open cultural space where anyone can encounter art in their daily lives."
Cafe I Got Everything is an initiative launched by the Korea Disabled People's Development Institute in 2016, starting with its first branch at the Government Complex Sejong. The project partners with public agencies and private facilities to provide jobs for baristas with severe disabilities. The National Museum of Korean Contemporary History branch is the first cafe established inside a national museum to employ people with severe disabilities.
