What age do you have to be to start creating amazing works of art?
Can someone who never created an art piece before become an artist later in life? At what age do you stop producing truly inspiring pieces?
Since 1981, not-for-profit PMMA’s (Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America) Art is Ageless® program has been recognizing the creativity of seniors through an art competition and calendar. The program has expanded to include arts programming, educational opportunities and attendance at cultural events throughout Kansas and Missouri, where PMMA’s 16 communities are located.
The first Art is Ageless calendar in 1981 featured resident art. In 2006, the competition was expanded to include area artists age 65 and older as well. The 2021 Art is Ageless calendar will celebrate 40 years of the program.
Bill Walter never tires of his …
Bill Walter never tires of his friend, ‘O Weary Tree’
Bill Walter recalls his longtime friend, O Weary Tree, in photo and poetry. On a trip out to southeastern Colorado, on a dusty road miles from La ...
Senior companion keeps busy with quilting, …
Senior companion keeps busy with quilting, cross-stitch
Linda McCoy, pictured with her sons Tim and Mike Textile artist Linda McCoy learned about the Art is Ageless® program through her volunteer work a ...
Art is Ageless entries highlight Aberdeen …
Art is Ageless entries highlight Aberdeen Village residents’ talents
A Walk around Aberdeen by Ginny Graham The year 2020 has certainly been a challenge and a different year in many ways. The COVID-19 pandemic hi ...
Retired couple shares passion for …
Retired couple shares passion for painting
"Old-timers Car and Barn" by Lyn Kirk, Parsons Presbyterian Manor, from the 2020 Art is Ageless competition Husband-and-wife artists Lynn and Jan ...
The creative process increases self-esteem, reduces depression, improves memory, promotes critical thinking, encourages playfulness, provides a sense of control, nurtures spirituality, and builds friendships between residents and people outside their generation.
In 2006, a study by George Washington University on behalf of the National Endowment for the Arts, found that the arts have a positive effect on health and illness as we age. Current studies in art therapy, music therapy and other creative pursuits confirm that art can affect individuals in positive ways, whether they are creating art or enjoying the works of another.
Encouraging older adults to take up the arts and express themselves is a natural fit for PMMA’s philosophy of empowering older adults to live the way they want to live.
Through the Art is Ageless program, residents and friends of Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America are proving that art, in any form, is an ageless ambition.