Retirement Reloaded: Wonderful Women of Words
Stand + Stare
An interactive book made with older women that challenges stereotypes
Made by
Barney Heywood
Barney is Co-Director of Stand + Stare, who develop innovative and beautifully-crafted ways to share stories that combine digital and physical experiences.Lucy Telling
Lucy is Co-Director of Stand + Stare, creating interactive installations, exhibitions and performances.Helen Manchester
Helen Manchester has a strong track record and reputation as an educational researcher and lecturer in the field of digital and material cultures, futures and learning across the lifecourse.As you turn the pages of the Retirement Reloaded book the printed illustrations come to life with projected animations.
We worked with the Retirement Reloaded team to produce an interactive book of poems that come to life, using image recognition, with projected animations and recorded audio.
The team wanted to challenge the narrative of how society sees older women, and gather together some of the positive wisdom, outrageous humour and insights of this powerful group of women. The poems they produced talk of transition and change, invisibility and pivotal life moments, reflecting the creative explorations that took place in a series of workshops spanning the joy, pain, wisdom and lived experience of the women taking part.
Retirement Reloaded is one of six prototypes produced for Connecting Through Culture As We Age, which is funded by the UKRI Healthy Ageing Challenge through the University of Bristol. The aim is to improve the quality of life for older populations, particularly those that are disabled, or racially or socio-economically minoritised.
The project was produced by Georgina Densley on behalf of Alive Activities and the creative process was led by artist Liz Clarke in collaboration with co-researcher Elanora Ferry. The Interactive book was designed and fabricated by Stand and Stare with illustrations by Rosi Tooth.
Research and recordings by Tot Foster.