CREATIVE ENCOUNTERS

Since 2000, members of the queer community have joined professional artists for ongoing Intergeneration Creative Workshops. During these meetings participants engage in dialogue about issues of aging and generation stereotyping, the challenges of building queer community, and intergeneration mentoring. The participants use such discussion to guide them in the creation of new collaborative works of art that are presented during Gay Pride Month in June of each year, through the Intergeneration Performance Series, Intergeneration Anthology, Exhibition, and Web Site.

One of the most significant developments for the Intergeneration project evolved around the identification of positive and negative stereotypes. Youth, seniors, and queers of all ages named positive and negative stereotypes of youth and age then used those words as a basis to create intergeneration collaborations, in body sculpture and photography. People paired up with someone from another generation and in turn, sculpted each other into a form representing a stereotype, which they then photographed.

Old people are:

Positive Stereotypes
Wise, walking history, thoughtful, reflective, smiling, happy, steadfast, dependable, interested in community, accomplished, resourceful, useful, volunteers, mentors, understanding, engaged, witty, daring, busy, meaningful, open, strong, wanted, together, deep, tolerant, giving, sensitive, political

Negative Stereotypes
Smelly, without lineage, crotchety, forgetful, unsexy, lecherous, grumpy, useless, feeble, unhealthy, unwanted, out of touch, unmuscular, sensitive to sound, unwilling to accept their age, lonely old fags, perverts, ugly

Young people are:

Positive Stereotypes
Open, curious, attractive, fun loving, energetic, innocent, sexy, receptive, successful, hard working, virginal, come out early, bold, open to all senses

Negative Stereotypes
Shallow, fearful of older people, hateful of old people, vapid, narcissists, flighty, self-centered, cruel, very rejecting, imitators, don't like to talk, hiding secrets, vacuous, technophiles, uncaring, intolerant, naïve

Video footage: Ron Williams