Noel McGuinness - Morningside AFL Legend
In 2021 I approached Feros Care with an idea...to make seniors feel loved, remind them of their value to society, and capture highlights from their lives.
Feros Care jumped at the idea, as they're all about smashing stereotypes around ageing and love to say:
'Grow Bold, Not Old'.
We were a match made in heaven. We put a call out for 15 seniors willing to share their stories and become models. We received over 50 applications. In the end we chose 30 diverse seniors, both living within Feros Care villages and from the general public in Northern NSW and Southeast Queensland to work with.
We decided to call our collaboration:
'Visible Me'.
Over the next months I spend countless hours interviewing and writing up each story. There were endless tears, laughter, shock, sadness, and inspiration as I heard about their rich, fascinating lives. Because even those of us who don't think we have a story, have a story.
Together with my team,
(click here to view these amazing people) we pampered each senior with hair, makeup, and unique styling to ensure they had a photograph that caused the viewer to be curious as to their story, and be drawn in to read more. It also allowed the participants to see themselves in a new light.
I wanted to show that beauty never fades, we just lose sight of it. I absolutely achieved this with my team, as every single person felt incredibly grateful for the attention we spent on them alone.
It has always been my passion to ensure that our elderly feel not only loved by others but feel a strong sense of self-worth.
This project is my gift to help spread self-compassion, understanding, and visibility.
In addition to gifting the participating seniors with printed and framed images from their photoshoots, print outs of their life stories and digital copies of the above; we aim to host multiple exhibitions of these important works across the country to showcase to everyone how important our seniors are and how much they still have to offer all of us, we just need to give them time. We are also considering a coffee table book, podcast and a TV slot.
View the final images and stories either here, on my website, or on the Feros Care website, below.
https://www.feroscare.com.au/visible-me
Behind the Scenes
Everyone was thrilled to see a full photographic studio being set up in their homes and loved the banter between all of us working on the shoot. I could see people fill with joy that all these women were fussing over them, doing their hair and make-up, styling them, and ensuring they were comfortable and felt incredible, like the incredible people they are!
These moments reminded me of what an important thing it is we're doing with this project.
Click here to see a few of the 'Behind the Scenes images and videos from these shoots.
These moments reminded me of what an important thing it is we're doing with this project.
Click here to see a few of the 'Behind the Scenes images and videos from these shoots.
Visible Me Launch Event
Click through to view images from the launch event at Robina Community Centre in March 2022.
You can find all of the instances of Visible Me in the news here.
You can find all of the instances of Visible Me in the news here.
The Visible Me Photos and Stories
Public Feedback
"I have been listening to some of your amazing interviews with seniors. They are uplifting. Yesterday my mother in law aged 95 years old passed away. Lockdowns and distance meant we have haven’t seen her for 12 months. Then as people become more frail telephone communication becomes nearly impossible to arrange. We last spoke to Dot in February and I recorded he voice for the few minutes we were on the phone". - Jeanette
"What a delight! Beautifully done portraits of our elders! Congratulations to all and thank you for sharing online. Being an older person in Australia can be tough, for lots of reasons. Celebrate age and treat all people with respect and kindness. These portraits show joy and life. Well done everyone". - Catrina
"Thank you for presenting us with your wonderful tribute to our older citizens. It gives a light to the lives and journeys of others that we often forget". Thank you, Grant
"What a delight! Beautifully done portraits of our elders! Congratulations to all and thank you for sharing online. Being an older person in Australia can be tough, for lots of reasons. Celebrate age and treat all people with respect and kindness. These portraits show joy and life. Well done everyone". - Catrina
"Thank you for presenting us with your wonderful tribute to our older citizens. It gives a light to the lives and journeys of others that we often forget". Thank you, Grant