Aging Well with Art

Aging Well with Art Observations & Key Learnings from Workshops Delivered Fall 2019

Indefinite Arts Centre acknowledges Alberta Seniors and Housing for their “Aging Well in Community� grant that was critical in developing and delivering our work.

Inside this booklet: • Introduction to Indefinite Arts Centre and its Aging Well with Art workshop series • Case studies and quotations from participants • Cyanotype Workshop Instructions • General findings and conclusions

Introduction Welcome to Aging Well with Art, an information guide developed by Indefinite Arts Centre following a three-month long workshop series delivered in Calgary, specifically catered to seniors living with cognitive challenges such as dementia.

We hope you find the information provided helpful – and that key elements such as the Cyanotype Workshop Instructions will assist you in delivering similar types of easy-to-deliver programs for seniors in your community.

Indefinite Arts Centre is Canada’s oldest and largest disability arts organization based in Calgary, Alberta. Founded in 1975, the Centre now supports more than 300 artists living with physical and/or developmental disabilities through artistic training, creation, and exhibition opportunities primarily in the visual arts. With a significant portion of our participants having multiple physical and mental health diagnoses – as well as a sizable number of participants aged 60 and over – the Centre saw alignment with its work and the goals of the Aging Well in Community grant administered by Alberta Seniors and Housing.

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Why Aging Well with Art? Indefinite Arts Centre explored the developing of the Aging Well with Art workshop series based on a number of anecdotal and statistical figures found through research, including: • A 2019 report conducted by the City of Edmonton1 stated that: • When it came to educational activities, “never” was most frequently mentioned by just over one-third of respondents (34%), with only a small portion (8%) of respondents stating that they were engaged in such activities more than once a week.

• In the same report, location was the most frequently stated reason for choosing a specific facility to attend/visit by respondents (35%).

• 44% of respondents wished to be more active in the community or in their everyday life.

• Less than 20% engage in recreational or leisure activities, with less than 8% engaging in educational activities.

• Lower income older adults are less active but are interesting in being more active.

In addition, the World Health Organization defines health as referring to the physical, mental, and social well-being of an individual. The WHO goes further in their Active Aging: A Policy Framework by promoting both mental health and social connections as important as those that improve physical health status2.

With 45 years in delivering arts-based programs to a wide range of individuals living with disabilities, Indefinite Arts Centre also had firsthand knowledge of the transformative power of the arts on vulnerable communities – and wanted to develop a way that would translate the work we do on a day-to-day basis in our facility but in communities where seniors live and interact. The Aging Well with Art workshops were free, based in seniors’ communities, and have an exhibition component where participants could see their works proudly on display in a curated arts installation.

Seniorscouncil.net. (2019). OLDER ADULTS NEEDS ASSESSMENT. [online] Available at: https://www.seniorscouncil.net/uploads/files/ Older-Adults-Needs-Assessment-2019-Final-Report.pdf [Accessed 13 Dec. 2019].

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Apps.who.int. (2002). Active ageing: a policy framework. [online] Available at: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/67215/ WHO_NMH_NPH_02.8.pdf;jsessionid=29BFDE6ACAD96DBFA852D05D2B360F4F?sequence=1 [Accessed 13 Dec. 2019].

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Workshop Development In developing a specific workshop for this project, the Centre’s staff engaged in multiple conversations with staff from existing seniors-serving organizations as well as senior citizens in various community settings on what they would like to see from an arts-based workshop. An initial series of trial workshops were developed at the Indefinite Arts Centre facility, which then led to the development of a traveling workshop that could be mobile and implemented at various seniors’ groups across the city of Calgary – based off of feedback from the trial workshops. Various components – such as the type of materials used or the duration of the workshop – were adjusted as a result of the trial workshops.

Ultimately, the fundamental principles of program delivery at Indefinite Arts Centre are very well-aligned with the approach taken in developing the workshops for seniors. These principles include: • Activities should teach participants about their individual impact and the importance of themselves in community and in society.

• Activities should give participants a sense of self-efficacy and well-being.

• Activities need to allow for time for self-reflection and creative expression.

• And activities need to be accessible enough for participants to be able to re-create themselves.

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How to deliver your own Cyanotype Workshop Use this information to develop your own cyanotype workshop in your community.

MATERIALS:

PREPARATION:

• Transparency paper

Before the workshop begins, it is important to set out the materials that are needed.

• Sharpie markers, Lightfast drawing pens or black ink • Printing objects (e.g., stencils, plant matter, transparent fabrics, lace, string, buttons, feathers, paper clips, small sentimental objects)

Set a place for each attending artist with the follow supplies: • A wooden board • A sheet of transparency paper

• Water trays

• A sheet of Plexiglas

• Fresh water source

• 4 bulldog clips

• Contact printing frames (Plywood with Plexiglas and clamps will work, we cut ours to 11” x 15”)

• A Sharpie marker

• Cyanotype paper

After setting up the artist’s places lay out the printing objects on a table where artists can easily access them, supplying scissors to allow for the option cutting objects into smaller pieces. Next set up a water tray with water and vinegar for rinsing the prints. Finally create a place for the prints to dry, this could be a table to lay the prints on, or a hanging line that the prints can be pinned to.

• Sunlight or Exposure unit

questions before they begin to create their prints.

Artists can now start to create their prints.

To begin each artist will place a piece of transparency paper in the center of the wooden board they were provided with.

Important techniques to cover:

Next they will lay out their designs onto the piece of transparency paper. By placing their objects on transparency paper instead of directly onto the cyanotype paper the artists have more time to experiment with the composition and content of their print without having exposed their cyanotype until they are sure that their image is ready.

• Drawing or writing on the transparency paper with photoopaque markers • Transferring, and clamping their cyanotypes before exposing • Exposing their cyanotypes

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• Rinsing/processing their cyanotypes • Hanging or placing their cyanotypes to dry

HELPFUL TIPS: • Remind the artists that objects that are thick may create a more blurred image, and they should be placed on top of the Plexiglas after assembling their cyanotype in the contact frame and just before exposing the image. This will ensure that the other objects still have good

contact with the cyanotype paper and the contact fame is not obstructed.

• Remind artists that their image will appear in negative. This means that anything that is black or opaque will appear as white and objects that are transparent or areas left blank will appear cyan in colour after the image is exposed to light.

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Artists of note who have worked with cyanotype include Anna Atkins, Annie Lopez, Christian Marclay, and Barbara Kasten.

• Laying out images before exposing them

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STEP 2:

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Provide the artists with historical background, artists of note, and images of cyanotypes, followed by a walkthrough of how to create their own cyanotypes.

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Give the artists time to ask

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STEP 4:

Once the artist has decided on their content, design, and composition they are ready to set up their cyanotype for exposure.

At this point the artists can place their print outside in the sun to expose.

Artists with a steady hand can slide the cyanotype paper under their layer of transparency paper that they have placed their designs, and printing objects on.

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HELPFUL TIP: • If sliding the cyanotype paper under the transparency paper is not feasible for the artist, they can place a second sheet of transparency paper over the cyanotype paper and place the objects in the same places using their original composition as their guide while transferring the objects.

On a sunny day a print can be exposed for 10-15 minutes. For partially cloudy days start with 15-20 minutes, increasing up to 30 minutes or more on overcast days.

It is recommended to check the materials you are using for information on specific exposure times, as they may vary.

It is also possible to purchase commercial exposure units for exposing the cyanotypes, or make your own UV exposure unit with some time and knowhow.

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HELPFUL TIP: Stress to the artists the importance of timing their exposure as prints that are under or over exposed will not have as good of results. Setting a timer with an alarm to remind you is a good way to keep track of when your print is done.

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After sufficiently rinsing the cyanotype it can now be dried.

This can be done by hanging the cyanotypes on a drying line or by placing the prints on a table. It is best to leave the prints untouched until they are fully dry, as the wet prints are fragile and susceptible to tears or surface damage if handled improperly.

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When rinsing the prints artists will want to place the print into the water bath and then gently agitate the print in the water by rocking the tray slightly. This will ensure that the print surface is not altered or damaged by being touched. To ensure that the cyanotype solution is fully removed from the paper it is best to rinse the print in several times, each time in a new fresh water bath.

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Once the artists’ prints have been sufficiently exposed to sunlight they will need to develop their prints by rinsing them in water.

Note: To speed development and to increase appearance of midtones in your prints you can add a small amount of white vinegar to your initial water bath. For our project we used approximately 4 tablespoons of vinegar to 1L of water.

Develop

STEP 5:

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General Findings Feedback from our 20 workshops delivered both within Indefinite Arts Centre and at seniors’ communities throughout Calgary was very positive.

There were approximately 10 participants per workshop.

Some general feedback included: • “Great workshop! I loved how accessible the project was. The results were so interesting and it was nice to see all different projects and outcomes.”

• “It was time well spent.”

• “This was a perfect opportunity to engage in an activity that was surprisingly accessible and meet some new people from my community.”

• “It was so nice to be given the chance to make art and exercise my creativity.”

• “I can’t wait to do this with my grandkids.”

• “It was surprisingly easy, and it was really fun for me as someone who really has not had formal artistic skills or training.”

• “It felt so good making this art, and all of the prints looked so beautiful.”

• “Our instructor was so talented and is a passionate teacher.”

• “I felt like I learned a lot in a short time.”

At the time of writing this report, work is underway to prepare an exhibition featuring the participants’ work in February 2020. Participants and family members will be invited to an exhibition opening where they will have the opportunity to talk about the workshop and share their experiences with members of the public.

General Findings

Acknowledgments Indefinite Arts Centre would like to acknowledge the Government of Alberta through the Ministry of Seniors and Housing for their critical support in allowing us to explore and deliver the Aging Well with Art workshops throughout Calgary. This project would also not have been possible without willing partners and host organizations that opened their doors to us – thank you.

A special “thank you” also goes to the talented Vanessa Toews, Coordinator, Programs and Exhibitions at Indefinite Arts Centre for leading the program design and execution of these workshops.

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For more information, please contact: Vanessa Toews Coordinator, Programs and Exhibitions Indefinite Arts Centre 403.253.3174 ext. 7 vanessa.toews@ourIAC.ca

The Centre also recognizes its ongoing partners for their investments: