Elderly people take centre stage for the new season of Apropa Cultura

Using the hashtag #MaiSoles (never alone), the inclusive culture network Apropa Cultura is marking fifteen seasons with an edition geared towards senior citizens living in homes for the elderly, those who use day centres, programmes for Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, and who have limited access to culture as a consequence of the pandemic.

The 130 plus cultural facilities belonging to the Apropa Cultura network are opening up to users from more than 2,600 social entities. The Festival Cruïlla, the Museu d’Història de Catalunya, the Fundació Suñol and the Tibidabo Amusement Park are among this who joined in last season.

This year sees the programme ‘El museu s’apropa’ join the project with a series of initiatives organised at homes for the elderly. An initiative by the Municipal Institute for Social Services, the programme came in response to the pandemic and is aimed at people with light dementia who are living in homes as a tool for stimulating and improving mental health and combatting loneliness and sadness.

Ten city facilities form part of ‘El museu s’apropa’: the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, the Museu Picasso, the Museu de Ciències de Barcelona, the CCCB, the Museu Frederic Marès, the Museu d’Història de Barcelona, the Museu Etnològic i de les Cultures del Món, the Museu del Disseny, the Fundació Antoni Tàpies and the Fundació Suñol.

A social project in constant growth

Apropa Cultura goes from strength to strength in its work to build ties between the social and the cultural world and to foster more inclusive, accessible and diverse culture. The initiative has helped generate 363,000 cultural outings for vulnerable people or those with disabilities since 2006. The inclusive culture network is also present in 44 municipalities in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands.

For more information on the Apropa Cultura project go to apropacultura.cat.