When Generations Meet + Reconnect
In a time when technology separates as much as it connects, Mind the Gap brought together two often isolated age groups – seniors and youth – in a shared intergenerational community arts initiative.
Organized by Centre[4]Arts and presented at the Guelph Civic Museum, this program brought together senior and young individuals from Hamilton and Guelph to explore creativity, identity, and belonging with collaborative artmaking.
Over a series of sessions, participants shared personal stories and cultural identities, explored new artistic techniques in visual and multimedia forms, and reflected on themes of self and togetherness.
Artists Becky Katz and Chyler Sewell in Hamilton, and Dawn Matheson in Guelph each worked with three seniors and three youth participants. Paired together, these intergenerational duos (Joanne + Janeil, Suad + Wren, and Judith + Subomi) engaged in a series of virtual workshops exploring portraiture, art installation, and multimedia storytelling.
Though initially planned as an in-person program, Mind the Gap was reimagined successfully as a digital experience during the pandemic. Despite the challenges posed by this pivot, the program thrived in an online setting, building meaningful relationships across generations and distances.
Through guided exercises and open dialogue, participants fostered trust, vulnerability, humour, and compassion, ultimately transforming virtual meetings into deep creative bonds.
Mind The Gap was developed with support from the Canada Council for the Arts and Guelph Museums.
