‘Colour and communion’: Exploring the influences of visual art-making as a leisure activity on older women's subjective well-being

Abstract

. 'Colour and communion': Exploring the influences of visual art-making as a leisure activity on older women's subjective well-being. Journal of Aging Studies, 24(2),[135][136][137][138][139][140][141][142][143] 'Colour and communion': exploring the influences of visual art-making as a leisure activity on older women's subjective well-being AbstractResearch into the subjective experience of art-making for older people is limited, and has focused mostly on professional artists rather than amateurs. This study examined older women's motives for visual art-making. Thirty-two participants aged 60-86 years old were interviewed. Twelve lived with chronic illness; twenty reported good health. Nearly all had taken up art after retirement; two had since become professional artists. Participants described their art-making as enriching their mental life, promoting enjoyment of the sensuality of colour and texture, presenting new challenges, playful experimentation, and fresh ambitions. Art also afforded participants valued connections with the world outside the home and immediate family. It encouraged attention to the aesthetics of the physical environment, preserved equal status relationships, and created opportunities for validation. Art-making protected the women's identities, helping them to resist the stereotypes and exclusions which are commonly encountered in later life.

Visual art-making as a resource for living positively with arthritis: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of older women's accounts

“…Some met regularly with like-minded others at local exhibitions. Visual art-making and music-making have been welcomed as a source of social connectedness by older people regardless of their levels of health (Fisher & Specht, 1999;Hays & Minichiello, 2005;Reynolds, 2010), which is a theme that resonates with this study's findings.…”

“…Focusing outwards and celebrating the aesthetics of the natural environment seemed to reflect a long-standing visual sensitivity, yet also encouraged the further development of such sensitivity. The psychological well-being derived from close attention to color and form has been noted in other studies of female visual artists, including some who were coping with chronic conditions, and some who were facing the challenges of later life (Reynolds, 2004;Reynolds & Vivat, 2008;Reynolds, 2010;Rodeheaver, Emmons, & Powers, 1998). Paying close attention to the detail of local scenes also helped these participants, who were otherwise limited by mobility problems, to feel less trapped within their homes and immediate surroundings, to feel stimulated by what they observed, and to feel engaged in the wider world.…”

“…This finding is supported by the theory of Atchley (1999) who proposed that continuity of identity and occupation preserves older people's well-being. Older people in previous studies have also described their visual art-making as promoting self-esteem and ongoing personal development (Fisher & Specht, 1999;Reynolds, 2010), although most of those interviewed in previous studies were living with good health rather than with a painful incurable illness.…”

“…Many of the pleasures that they associated with art-making are shared with visual artists who enjoy good health such as the sensuality of color and texture, and the satisfaction of achieving goals (Reynolds, 2010). However, the interviews revealed that art-making as a leisure activity provided a rich resource for coping with arthritis.…”

“…There has been very limited previous research into the meanings of creative leisure activities for older people coping with arthritis, although older people more generally attribute a range of cognitive and social benefits to these activities (Reynolds, 2010). Listening to music appears to reduce perceptions of pain among people with osteoarthritis (McCaffrey, 2008).…”