Staycation of Dementia Patients and Their Families with Art

Teaching aids of Praise for Daily Life-Art Museum at Home (Photo by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art)

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art(director Yoon Beommo) and the Korean Society for Dementia (Chairman Park Kun-Woo Park) started the online education program for the Occupational Therapist at the Relief for Dementia Center on the 9th. It was announced on the 10th that they are running the online program for dementia patients and their families which is called Praise for Daily Life-Art Museum at Home.

This year as COVID-19 has prolonged face-to-face activities have become difficult raising concerns about worsening symptoms of dementia patients and gaps in art healing. Accordingly the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the Korean Dementia Association planned on-line and offline programs to prevent social isolation of dementia patients and to maintain emotional stability and ability of daily life by moving away from the form of excursion which was previously conducted in museums.

In the previously conducted online education for occupational therapists the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art provided real-time online education for occupational therapists in the Relief for Dementia Center directly demonstrating art museum education using the possessing teaching materials and shared ways to effectively practice from appreciating works to expressing and talking.

Occupational therapists who participated in the Praise for Daily Life online training will conduct programs using the relevant teaching materials and videos in consideration of the COVID-19 prevention rules and the situation of each center. Through this dementia patients and their guardians can enjoy art works and continue their Praise for Daily Life activities even if they do not visit the museum.

The National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the Korean Dementia Association have jointly produced two teaching aids for the collections of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Gim Hwan-gi‘s Two Moons and Goo Bon-woongs Portrait of a Friend and a link to the 10-minute video of Art Museum Collection Lecture will be distributed to dementia patients and protectors who wish to participate in the education through the Relief for Dementia Center.

Park Gun-woo the chairman of the Korean Dementia Association (Professor of Neurology at Korea University Anam Hospital) said As COVID-19 made it difficult to visit museums so I was regrettable not being able to share different experiences like usual. I hope that through the campaign dementia patients and their protectors can regain vitality in their daily lives and social isolation would be minimized.

National Museum of Contemporary Art Yoon Beom-mo said Efforts will be continuously made so that dementia patients and their families can celebrate their daily lives through culture and art.

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