About the Campaign

What’s inspired this exhibition?

In March this year many organisations across the country (including ourselves) sprang into action to provide food supplies, medication drop-offs, befriending services, joy from a distance, and all sorts of support for those whose age meant they are at a higher risk of being impacted by Covid-19. This response was the right thing at the time (and is still really important and on-going in lots of cases), however, we’ve been reflecting and we’re not the only ones who have noticed that for a large percentage of 2020 so far, people aged 50 and over have become categorised as “vulnerable” and “frail”, and we’ve heard less about individuals’ and their experiences to counteract this.

We know that the response to Covid-19 has been about keeping everyone as safe as possible and we couldn’t agree more. Everyone has done a remarkable job of taking care and we’re really proud to be an organisation that’s been helping to reduce loneliness and isolation – something which has been even more important during these times. But we also know that people aged 50 and over are so much more than the terms we keep hearing on the news, on the radio, and in articles all over the country.

Now that things are easing in some ways and places, we’d like to take the chance to hear the individual stories from people aged 50 and over throughout the last few months, and then share them in the form of a story photography exhibition that will truly represent people aged 50 and over in Sheffield.

There are three themes in the exhibition: joy, connection and resilience, and we’ve included some more detail about the type of things we’d love to share in each of the themes below.

Joy

In this theme we’ll be highlighting the hobbies and moments that have made you smile and brought lightness amongst tough times throughout the last few months. It might have been re-discovering your love of reading, or starting creative writing. It might have been watching birds out the windows, or re-visiting re-runs of your favourite comedy. Some of you might have been doing more with technology, or it could be something totally different like trying outdoor swimming or dyeing your hair stripey colours for the first time! Whatever it is, we’d like to hear it!

Connection

In this theme we’d like to share images of the inventive and inspiring ways people have been connecting with others. We’d particularly like to focus on the ways people have had a real positive impact in the lives of others, for example you might have volunteered to drop food off at houses, you might have delivered online zoom coffee mornings for people. Maybe you adapted your singing business to entertain neighbours? Or maybe you’ve been working in a supermarket and bringing huge positivity to your colleagues and customers. Don’t be shy, we really want to meet you and tell your story!

Resilience

It’s safe to say it’s been an enormously challenging time lately and so we’re keen to hear how you’ve been adapting. Is there anything you’ve started doing differently? Maybe you’ve written to people you’ve not spoken to in a while? Maybe you started making facemasks for your community, or going cycling in the evenings? You might have made new connections with neighbours or started reaching out to people in small ways. Maybe you just got out of bed every morning to feed the cats and that was enough (we salute you!).

Through this exhibition we want to celebrate people aged 50 and over. We want to share the little and the big moments that have made a difference in this challenging year, and the ways you have made a difference too. Whilst we hope this exhibition will be a positive way for people to share their voices, we also know that for many, many people, 2020 continues to be an incredibly tough year. Whatever life has been like, whether you feel like you fit into our three categories or not, we’d love to hear from you.

I’m intrigued – what would it involve?

If you are aged 50 and over and are interested in being captured in this exciting way, we would love to hear from you. We’re looking for around 15 people to have their photos taken and their stories shared in a unique exhibition that reflects the truth of your experiences and lives.

We will be working with a photographer who will (from a safe distance) take a photo of you (maybe doing the thing your story involves, or it can be just you in a place you are comfortable). We will share this photo online in a digital exhibition, and hopefully in person too in Sheffield City Centre.

If you already have a photo you have taken since March 2020 and would like to share with us, we’d love to see that and share it too. And if you like the sound of this but don’t feel up to a photo, we would still like to chat with you.

Please get in touch by sending us a short email about yourself and your story: agebettersheffield@syha.co.uk. Or by calling 01142900294.