London’s longest-running inclusive club night will return this summer for a one-night-only free event at Wellcome Collection. On Friday 12 July 2024, 7–11pm, the award-winning creative arts charity Heart n Soul will present The Beautiful Octopus Club, an immersive late-night line up of music, DJs, art and live performances from headline artists Dean Rodney Jr. & The Cowboys, Electric Fire and Sebastian Golgiri, among others.
Free and open to everyone, The Beautiful Octopus Club is a celebration of learning disability culture, with arts and creative community at its core. Created by and for people with learning disabilities and autistic people, the Club has inhabited unique venues in London since 1995, coming to Wellcome Collection for the first time this July.
On Wellcome Collection’s ground floor, visitors will be welcomed by the Heart n Soul choir and a silent disco before encountering ‘The Fuse’, a hub of live performances and art projections from Heart n Soul artists and DJs, including Dean Rodney Jr. & the Cowboys and Electric Fire. Live performances in The Fuse will be accompanied by BSL interpretation.
The museum’s upper floor will host the ‘Warm Wellcome’ space, with immersive acoustic music and poetry readings hosted by Tilley & Del the Piggie, featuring space trumpet from Robyn Rocket, new music from Pino Frumiento and poetry from Sam Castell-Ward. The evening will also mark the live
debut of the ‘Cheryl Moment’ – a piece of calming music by Heart n Soul artist Cheryl Lyte, designed to create a friendly and relaxing ambience and a break from the outside world.
The Beautiful Octopus Club will have a chill out room for those seeking rest and relaxation, along with ‘Your Space to Create’, an art making area facilitated by Heart n Soul artists Ben Connors and Catherine Long. The Heart n Soul radio studio will broadcast live to attendees throughout the night.
The Feel Good Designers – Heart n Soul’s team of visual artists – will craft the club’s exuberant visual identity, to transform the space and guide club-goers around everything The Beautiful Octopus Clubhas to offer. Wellcome Collection’s ‘Being Human’ gallery and ‘Jason and the Adventure of 254’ – a joyful exhibition created by artist Jason Wilsher-Mills – will be open and accessible to attendees throughout the event.
From 2018–2020, Heart n Soul were residents of The Hub at Wellcome Collection, a transdisciplinary research centre that brings together different voices and expertise to explore health-related questions in a new way. Heart n Soul’s Hub residency shed new light on public attitudes towards learning disability and imagined an alternative, more inclusive future through art and design.
Mark Williams, Artistic Director, CEO and co-founder of Heart n Soul, said:
‘Bringing the Beautiful Octopus Club to Wellcome Collection, fusing a night club in gallery spaces, connecting new audiences with each other, and everyone having the opportunity to experience joy, freedom and pride together is just what the world needs right now!’
Sumitra Upham, Associate Director, Curatorial and Public Practice at Wellcome Collection, said:
“We are delighted to be hosting The Beautiful Octopus Club this summer, an event that has a long- standing reputation for inclusivity, accessibility, and openness. The team at Heart n Soul are experts at bringing people from all walks of life together to celebrate, connect and have fun. With live
performances, DJ sets, creative activities and relaxation rooms, there is something on offer for everyone and we can’t wait to bring this free and inclusive experience to Wellcome Collection.”
The Beautiful Octopus Club at Wellcome Collection is free and open to everyone over 18. Those aged 16–18 must be accompanied by an adult throughout the event. A bar will be open to purchase drinks throughout the evening.
