Bridging Generations Through Artistic Creation: An Exploration of Intergenerational Learning Between Young and Older Adults

Abstract Book of the 10th World Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities

Year: 2026

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Bridging Generations Through Artistic Creation: An Exploration of Intergenerational Learning Between Young and Older Adults

Pei-Ru Li

ABSTRACT:

This study explores the interactive experiences and impacts generated through arts-based intergenerational learning between young adults and older adults, while examining the potential of artistic creation as a medium for cross-generational communication. As populations continue to age and opportunities for intergenerational contact decline, issues of ageism and intergenerational stereotypes have received increasing scholarly attention, highlighting the need to explore how art education can promote mutual understanding across generations. A qualitative research approach was adopted, involving young adults aged 18 to 24 and elders aged 65 and above. The researcher designed an arts-based intergenerational co-learning program emphasizing equal participation and mutual learning, employing artistic creation to facilitate dialogue and critical reflection, thereby fostering emotional connection and transforming perceptions of one another. Data included activity records, worksheets, and participants’ artworks, analyzed through art appreciation-based descriptive analysis, phenomenological interpretation, and triangulation. The findings revealed arts-based intergenerational co-learning fostered greater mutual understanding and positive transformations in the visual participants of one another. Young adults’ depictions of older adults shifted from static and symbolic representations toward more dynamic portrayals characterized by vitality and a sense of life, while older adults’ visual representations evolved from surface-level portrayals of youthful appearance toward more nuanced depictions of individual personality and characteristics. The findings suggest that artistic creation serves not only as a medium of aesthetic expression, but also an effective approach for promoting intergenerational dialogue, emotional exchange, and social empathy. The study further provides practical implications for future older adult art education and intergenerational learning program design.

Keywords: Ageism; Art Education; Intergenerational Inclusion; Qualitative Research; Visual Representation