ABSTRACT
This collection begins with two premises: that our understanding of the nature and forms of creativity in later life remains limited and that dialogue between specialists in gerontology, the arts and humanities can produce the crucial new insights that are so obviously needed. Representing the outcome of ongoing dialogue across the disciplinary divide, the contributions of this volume reflect anew on what we share and how we differ; creating new narratives so as to build an understanding of late-life creativity that goes far beyond the narrow confines of the pervasively received idea of ‘late style’.
Creativity in Later Life encompasses a range of personal reflections and discussions of the boundaries of creativity, including:
- Canonical artistic achievements to community art projects
- Narratives of carers for those living with dementia
- Analyses of creative theory
Through these insightful chapters, the authors consequently offer an understanding of creativity in later life as varied, socialised and - above all - located in the cultural and economic circumstances of the here and now.
This title will appeal to academics, practitioners and students in the various gerontological, arts and humanities fields; and to anyone with an interest in the nature of creativity in later life and the forms it takes.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part I|2 pages
The challenges of late-life creativity
part II|2 pages
Rethinking late style
chapter 5|16 pages
Constructing a late style for David Bowie
chapter 6|22 pages
An ‘old man in the dimming world’
part III|2 pages
The varieties of late-life creativity
part IV|2 pages
Narrating dementia
chapter 12|15 pages
A critical narrative on late-life creativity and dementia
chapter 13|16 pages
‘The artistry of it all’
chapter 15|13 pages
Narratives as talking therapy
part V|2 pages
Old age, creativity and the late city