Leading Age - January/February 2011 - 30

Releasing Potential for Wellness in Mind, Body and Spirit
A conversation about creative aging and the value of arts and education in wellness programs.
b y K i r s t e n J a c obs

he National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA), based in Washington, D.C., is an organization dedicated to evaluating, inventorying and supporting arts and education programs throughout the U.S. NCCA works to promote quality of life through creative expression, which it believes should be considered a crucial element of all wellness programming. LeadingAge interviewed Gay Hanna, NCCA’s executive director, via e-mail, about the natural links between creative expression and wellness. Ebenezer Care Centers in Minneapolis, Minn., received approximately $700,000 over two years from a [state fund] to build a Dancing Heart program with Kairos Dance. Kairos Dance is a company spanning four generations, with performers ranging in age from four to 101 years old, and one of only a handful of intergenerational modern dance companies in the United States. Goodwin House Alexandria and Goodwin House Bailey’s Crossroads in northern Virginia provide a variety of arts programming to their residents including a classical music lecture series; theater classes in acting, set design and costume design; weekly dance classes with a local dance company for residents with Parkinson’s disease; art classes and studio space for painting, drawing, sculpture and ceramics; as well as a gallery and a woodworking shop at Bailey’s Crossroads location that offers classes through the Washington Woodworkers’ Guild. Goodwin House Alexandria also hosts a community-wide arts festival. Ruth’s Table is a center for creative learning designed for people over 50 living independent lives, located within Bethany Center Senior Housing in San Francisco, Calif. Ruth’s Table1 programming spans many areas, from art classes to an intergenerational modern dance company; [from] creative writing to Tai Chi. It also includes an artist-in-residence program, a professional gallery with rotating exhibitions, music concerts, film screenings from different cultures and lectures covering an array of topics. Guest artists offer demonstrations in various disciplines, such as working with stained glass and
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LeadingAge: How do you define creative aging? Gay Hanna: Creative aging is a relatively new paradigm that articulates the idea of seeing older people for their potential rather than their problems. The “graying” of America promises dramatic change in every aspect of American life, and one of the most profound changes is our culture’s very perception of older adults. We’re moving from a “deficit” approach that stresses losses to an “asset” approach that stresses strengths, potential and achievements. Dr. Gene Cohen, author of The Creative Age, asserted that while problems certainly accompany aging, “[W]hat has been universally denied is the potential. The ultimate expression of potential is creativity.” LeadingAge: What is the relationship between creative expression and quality of life for older adults? GH: Creativity strengthens morale in later life, enhances physical health and enriches relationships. Creativity, which is inherent in everyone, can be nurtured throughout life, and through creativity, the expertise gained through one’s cumulative life experience has the potential to offset the complications of aging. It also constitutes the greatest legacy people can leave to their children, grandchildren and society as a whole since, historically, elders have functioned as keepers of the culture who pass on the history and values of a community to the next generation. LeadingAge: Might you share some examples of aging-services providers finding creative ways to engage older adults? GH: There are many wonderful examples of programs across the country.
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LeadingAge magazine | January/February 2011

See the article, “Affordable Wellness” on page 16.

Leading Age - January/February 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Leading Age - January/February 2011