Why Getting To Be an Older Artist is Good

Happy birthday to me. I'm making the progression tomorrow, June 6, from what I've been calling "60 and a half" to 61 years old. Here's a link from an article on a blog reviewing a book about the value of being an older artist. The blog is titled Ancient Artist....by Sue Smith.

But I recently started reading a book by Martin S. Lindauer, titled AGING, CREATIVITY, AND ART, A Positive Perspective on Late-Life Development.

According to Lindauer, there are seven characteristics that distinguish "old artists and late art from young artists and youthful efforts."

• "Older artists have more knowledge and are less career oriented.


• "They also have less energy - the only case where older artists were at a disadvantage to younger ones..."


• "...which they compensated for with greater maturity, concentration, and self-acceptance."


• "Older artists were also less critical than their younger counterparts."


• "However, in two areas, creativity and experimentation, older artists were seen as equal to younger practitioners." (2003, pp.187-188)

Happy birthday to me and to all of us older working, productive artists.