79. Representations of Old Age and the Elderly in Art

As populations in societies around the world continue to age, questions of care, ageing and cultural perceptions of later life have become increasingly significant. Art offers a valuable lens through which to examine how old age and older people have been understood, valued, and represented across different time periods and cultures.

Artists have engaged with the theme of ageing in independent and commissioned works, and self-portraits alike. American artist William Utermohlen (1933-2007), after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, documented his own cognitive and physical ageing through a powerful, evolving series of self-portraits. Similarly, the process of ageing in Finnish artist Helene Schjerfbeck’s (1862-1946) self-portraits has been widely discussed in research. Australian, UK based sculptor Ron Mueck’s (b. 1958) hyper-realistic sculptures explore the physical and mental features associated with advanced age.

This session examines representations of ageing and older people in art, asking what kinds of roles, meanings, and assumptions have been attached to old age in visual culture. In doing so, it considers how artistic representations have both reflected and shaped broader social attitudes towards ageing, later life, questions of ageism, and the place of the elderly in society.

We invite papers that explore a wide range of artistic media, including painting, sculpture, and media art.

Themes: old age, society, elderly

Additional format comment: Session format: four 20-minute research papers, each followed by 5 minutes for questions. I plan to include my own paper that discusses the 19th century Finnish genre paintings

Lead Convenor: Ringa Takanen, Art History, University of Turku, Finland

To submit a Paper to this Session, please follow the guidance on our website and complete the AAH 2027 Call for Papers Proposal Submission Form.