Arts and ageing: the lived experience of art among the young-old in singapore

Few studies have looked at the lived experience of art engagement among the young-old in Singapore. With a rapidly ageing population in mind, there is a need to better understand the perspectives, beliefs and experiences of the future generation of elders in Singapore with regards to art in order to determine how the arts can be better utilized as a tool for active-ageing. Adapting a qualitative approach to research, 4 focus group interviews were conducted with 19 participants who varied in their level of art engagement. The use of thematic analysis revealed 19 sub-themes which were further categorized into 7 categorical themes, as follows: (1) Art as Creativity (self-expression, products); (2) Art as Community (togetherness, sharing, arts-scene growth); (3) Art as Experiences (emotional engagement, stress reduction, satisfaction); (4) Art as Self-Understanding (pursuit of passion, self-discovery); (5) Art as Growth (appreciation, learning new skills, progression); (6) Art as Enrichment (fulfilling life, widening perspective, healthy living); and (7) Art as Capital (information technology, time-affluent, monetary resources). This paper discusses these themes and sub-themes in turn, compares the lived experiences of actively engaged and non-actively engaged participants, and provides recommendations for the promotion of art engagement among the young-old in Singapore.Bachelor of Art