Aspen Zettel has always looked to her elders for wisdom and support. When the photography instructor in the School of Continuing Education was offered funding for a community outreach initiative through a Merck Frosst endowment to improve the health and quality of seniors’ lives, she immediately knew what she wanted to do. She began organizing the Capturing Intergenerational Joy photo project.
“I had such a close relationship with my grandparents,” says Zettel, Fine Art ’07 and current Bachelor of Fine Arts student. “I really valued their influence in my life and the deep meaningful connections I had. I've always loved intergenerational relationships.”
She got in touch with Emma Poon, activity and wellness coordinator at Kiwanis Place Lodge, who helped her to find interview subjects for the project. Seven student photographers partnered with Kiwanis residents, who spoke about their lives and some of their fondest memories. When the photos were displayed in MacEwan’s Roundhouse in March, each project had a unique style and imagery, depending on their source material.
“These photographers all have particular styles, and went in with an idea of what they were going to do,” says Zettel. “When they met their person and got to know their personalities, their stories didn’t always match up with those plans. The assignment gave them the opportunity to step outside of their comfort zone and see the world through their partner’s view.”
The success of the photo essays was largely due to the relationships fostered between photographers and interviewees.
Lundgren’s story – a night of dancing, wearing designer heels – was channelled through Marla Boehr’s lens. Boehr not only got to learn how to compose photos about past events, edit these photos for print and see them displayed in an exhibition, but also found the conversations with Lundgren to be a reflective experience.
“I’m almost exactly half Vivian’s age,” says Boehr. “I saw in her that I still have a lot of my life to go through – love and loss and double the memories I have now.”
The two plan to keep in touch even now that the project is complete. Their friendship wasn’t the only one to come from the collaboration.
“A lot of residents here struggle with loneliness,” says Poon. “Seeing how much joy this brought them, and the connections they were able to form was really amazing.”
Plans are already underway for the partnership to continue next year. “My passion is facilitating deep, meaningful connections and I felt in my element with this project,” says Zettel. “From mentoring the students, to overhearing the conversations flow around me, this whole experience was a gift that I am incredibly grateful for.”