On 14 November 2022, I held the VIP launch event for Aging Singapore, my photography exhibition featuring elderly individuals in Singapore. Esteemed guests, including exhibition sponsors, partners, and industry professionals, were gathered at the Fullerton Hotel Singapore for the event. While some were admiring the portraits on display, others were spraying and smelling the various fragrances placed next to each portrait or scanning the QR codes on the caption boards to listen to accompanying audio recordings for each portrait. For example, a portrait of a woman who loves hiking is complemented by a fresh, woody fragrance and the sounds of someone walking on a leafy forest trail.
I have done a few photography exhibitions in my career as a professional photographer, but this is the first time I am doing a multi-sensorial photography exhibition, and I am very excited to share more about it with the Singaporean masses.
The allure of the Aged
I've done two previous exhibitions at the Fullerton Hotel: Haenyeo and Longevity Okinawa. Both of these exhibitions featured a lineup of elderly people, and now for Aging Singapore, the main focus is, once again, on senior citizens. Many people think that I specialize in portraiture for elderly folk, but it is, believe it or not, an unplanned coincidence that all three of my exhibitions feature the elderly.
The first exhibition, HAENYEO
Haenyeo focused on depicting and raising awareness about the women divers of Jeju Island, South Korea. Many are in their senior years, some still diving, even in their 80s. I flew to Jeju to photograph them on their morning dives, and I was awe-struck by their grit and determination, even in the later years of their lives.
This story is from the November 2022 Humanity edition of Lens Magazine.
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This story is from the November 2022 Humanity edition of Lens Magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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