The journey towards Death - a Sculpture

Nobody wants to be old. The word "old" in itself implies something negative, worn out and tired. It is a term that people find offensive.

Why does our society perceive old age in such a negative light?

We are all mortal. We are all going to die someday. Death is but inevitable, for no man is immortal.

The process of growing old is merely a journey towards death, something we should accept and come to terms with.
We need to learn to accept death, to embrace it rather than fear it.

As a group, Bhavani, Rahul Chacko and I wanted to pose a question to the public
"What do you feel when you are reminded of the fact that you are mortal, and that one day you feel cease to leave?"
and
"Is the journey towards death more frightening than death itself?"

Our sculpture aims at portraying acceptance of death, and understanding old age as a positive journey towards death. It will take the form of a pod, enclosing an ageless human figure, to represent a feeling of security at the idea of death and growing old.

Medicinal Flask.

Elderly people suffer from multiple diseases,thus making medicine a part and parcel of their lives.Keeping this   inevitable need of medicines in mind, and to make it available to them all whenever the need be, I have designed  a medicine container, which incorporates within it not just storage space,but also a water container and an alarm clock.

The design is made in a way that the lid of the water flask opens into a storage with four different slots for different medicines, and the the top cover has a digital alarm clock mechanism.The flask is attachable to the body through a belt or a sling,enabling them to carry their medicine wherever they go,have an easy access to water at all times and setting reminders for the dosage, finding a solution to this medication centered problem.

Retirement and After.

A visual representation of what I see myself as after retirement.It is my wish to explore those places in the world which I wouldn't have by then, and be a globe trotter of sorts, till my body permits me to.I wish to put all my free time to optimal use, and be as independent as possible.

The Indian Recliner (Prototype #1)

Click here for Project Brief.

Fully inclined angle of our prototype.

Working the mechanism.

Fully flat position.

Communicative Visual

[More to come]

Senior Citizens Retail Store (Anukriti, Ayushya, Malavika and Nihar)

India has retail stores for all sorts of audiences. There are retail stores for middle class families, children, Women and even Animals. But there’s not a single store in India which caters to the needs of its senior citizens.

We i.e. Ayushya, Anukriti, Malavika and me Nihar are attempting to conceptualise the same. Our project includes building a model which will show the architecture of the store and to design a logo and the signage to give the store a unique identity. Once the store is ready, we intend to make advertisements and posters to promote our store. The store is hypothetical, yet a possible urban experiment. Seems a little ambitious in terms of facilities but it will work if put to test. Here, we are trying to take the daily grocery shopping, frequent pharmaceuticals visit and the occasional "socializing" part of the old age to another level. This store will be a different experience altogether.

Architecture – The compound consists of four simple square rooms with a brick wall finish with a tiled and sloped roof. The interiors have storage space along the walls and in the centre so as to have more walking space for the senior citizens. The roofs have panels of diffused glass with wooden frames fit on them so as to . The four square rooms are placed and the four corners of a square and the rooms are connected by open air pathways. The centre will have a park with many benches for the senior citizens for them to rest and socialise with other senior citizens who come to shop at the store. Around all of this will be a square compound wall which will open towards roads. We have tried to give the complex a modern look but have placed and set up the complex in an old fashioned way by having the concept of an ‘Aangan’ in the retail store. So in a way we are giving the senior citizens a modern feel of the architecture but we are placing it in a way in which they will be familiar with the set up and will feel comfortable with the surroundings.

Graphics – For now the form we have thought of will be rounded and will have shades of Red, Yellow and orange to give a feeling of warmth and friendliness and at the same time make them feel enthusiastic and healthy. Nothing concrete has been formed as yet for the identity but one logo has been made.

Walking stick

Initial iterations of the product (a,b,c)

a)

b)

c)

d)

The above is the final iteration for the product that we had to design.

I did some basic research and this was the most commonly used product by the elderly in the world. There are thousands of variations for a walking stick which made my idea a little more complicated to execute.

Later i realised that not too many elderly people walk out confidently in the evening/night mostly due to problems with the eyes. Poor vision, accompanied by slow movement due to redcued motor functions make them less confident and hence they are confined to their homes most of the time.

So i thought of a product that would enable them to go out later during the day, when there isnt so much light. A torch and a reflector would be merged in such a way so as to serve the normal functions of a walking stick and also have the advantage.

This design could be worked further to make it more ergonomic. Perhaps the placement of the torch could be different so as to not affect the handle.

Chroma therapy and enviornment

We all know the fact that we can be easily affected by our enviornment, The colours in out enviornment subconsciously infiltrate in our minds and affect our moods.Each colour has its own properties which can affect different areas of our body.It aids in the regulation of these various biochemical reactions and thus it will also "heal" the magnetic fields surrounding us.
Using light waves of colour, we can actually encounter a lot of positive change in our mental, physical as well as spiritual endeveours.
Specific colors contain a positive energy frequency that is highly therapeutic in elevating your mood and creating tranquility. These vibrational frequencies affect your cells at different levels helping to restoring your equilibrium.With colour therapy aiding the recovery of a complaint is very easy and very precise. Due to the large range of available colours a treatment can be very exact in the effects that are achieved. Treatments can be very gentle as well as very strong simply by adjusting the exposure time to a specific vibration. So in conclusion it can be said that colour therapy is a very ancient art of healing which affects the body in various ways, both physically and energetically, by means of a range of different vibrations all of whose ultimate activator is light.
I believe, that the inroduction of chromatherapy in old age homes(which is practiced at only domestic means) can atually help these people to get relief from pain, and stress.

The Indian Recliner

Click here to see Prototype #1.

Click here to see Production of Final.

As we gets older our muscles begin to slowly lose their strength and we have difficulties in getting up from our beds or chairs as we don’t have the ability to carry our weight on our back. With an outlook to improve the existing situation of bad design incorporated in reclining beds for the aged at homes, old age homes and hospitals, we are setting out to make it much easier for ‘The Grand Patients’ to be self sufficient in reclining their beds.

There are 2 prevalent systems of reclining beds present in India apart from an electric alternative. One involves the caretaker to physically turn a crank situated at the end of the bed near the foot of the person lying on the bed. The other system has notches on the back of the reclining bed which the caretaker has to manually shift and prop it up with the help of a metal rod. The problem with both lie in the fact that they are extremely hard to negotiate with by the patients\patrons themselves. Also combined with the fact that these beds cost a minimum of twenty thousand rupees, while the electric one can set one back by anywhere between thirty to eighty thousand, a cheaper\handier alternative seems very viable considering the Indian perspective.

We have three proposals -

1. With the help of a set of gears incorporated in the working of the reclining bed, the patient can themselves control the extent of recline of the bed by rolling a small wheel, situated on their side at an arms distance, which is attached to the gears. This motion is facilitated by a counterweight extending from underneath the bed, which helps bring the top half of the bed to a semi upright

position. [Fig 1.2 and 1.2]

Fig. 1.1

Fig. 1.2

2. The patient can control the extent of recline of the bed by pressing two buttons, one for either direction, situated on the side of the bed at an arms distance. These buttons will be connected to a handy\cheap car hydraulic jack situated underneath the bed to move the counter weight.

3. This idea is a pure original. Keeping in mind the original counterweight idea, a motor pump [a simple alternating pump] is used to pump water as a weight to and fro from a tank affixed to the bed, to vary the extent of recline of the bed. There will be two buttons again on the side of the bed which would be connected to the pump. [Fig 2.1 and 2.2]

Fig 2.1

Fig 2.2

The option that turns out to be the most viable after making the prototype and figuring out material and cost will be the decided option to work on.

- Alok Utsav & Siddhanth Shetty

Healing Melodies

We all know that our environment is conducive to our state of being in terms of one's mood and health. Music therapy takes advantage of this correlation; it is the use of sound to improve and/or maintain health. With the advent of our final years there is a natural depression that creeps into our minds; music can naturally combat this, as well as, reduce stress and anger.
Environment is particularly important in hospitals;  a simple vase can brighten up the room. As can music. Research shows that ambient music can speed up recovery and help relieve pain. I propose incorporating this into as many hospitals as we can, especially in convalescent wards. The difference may not be felt immediately but I am sure there will be a marginal improvement, and as we all know, every quantum counts.
Music therapy is not just about feeling better; I firmly believe that music that induces fear, sadness and other emotions generally categorized as negative can still have an overall positive effect on the listener. This can be a cathartic experience that rids his or her system of these feelings.
The most important part of music therapy for the elderly (in my opinion) is the creation of music by the subject. Although this may not appeal to everyone, the minds of those who do take part will be kept active, preventing mental stagnation.
Altogether, the various facets of music therapy extensively cater to the needs of the healthy and the sick, across the ageline.

Can I be like this at my old age?

Here I have combined the top(head) and the base(feet) which signifies a lot of things to me.

Firstly; at my old age I wanted to be like steam of my family's tree which combine the top and the base(like in a tree steam holds the root and the branches) to hold my family together.

Also I will be suppressed by the younger generation's thoughts as well as also pulled towards the older conservative thoughts, so I wanted to stay in the middle of the both to bridge the gap.

And also I have used my feet at the place of my hair, I wanted both my hair and my feet with me working properly at that age.

Aquadettes : A short film (click here)

The film is about a 75 year old synchronised swimmer, Margo Bouer, on life, death and synchronised swimming. The group she swims with call themselves the Aquadettes and comprise a group of elderly women wanting to maintain their mobility, and therefore their independence.

Slideout Table

I noticed that many people seem to have trouble performing the last motion of seating oneself at a table: the part where one slides their chair partially under the table. This can be particularly painful in old age due to arthritis, rheumatism and other problems. As an indirect solution, aimed not at the root of the problem, but intended as a measure of some small relief, I have (designed is the wrong word) modelled a table with a slide out platform for dining, writing and a number of other purposes. The effort required to ease out the platform is much less than that required to slide the chair and oneself.

The table

The table with the platform etended

A small note about something

Sometimes I wonder why grandparents can be so annoying. They want to know everything that’s happening. That attitude comes across as the not-so-appreciated “being nosey”.

I thought about it after a really infuriating incident that occurred not so long ago. My grandparents had ‘happened’ to see some of my photos on a social networking site. Yes, Facebook. I think they are some of the few who actually want to keep up with the times and stay connected.

Although I was infuriated by what happened I realised that all they want is their presence to be felt and they want to be a part of our lives no matter how busy our schedules are.They only want us to go visit them and they’d absolutely love if one asked them about their day or problems they’re facing. They feel neglected and ignored. I tell them that they’re not and that they are as important to me as my parents since they helped bring us up.

My brother and I used to live with them every weekend when we were young, and they used to help us out with homework, drop us off to our classes, buy us little treats on the way; basically they’re the ones who spoilt us.

This is probably common among most grandparent-grandchild relationship. I’ve observed that many of them buy you into spending time with them. They buy you little presents and goodies and just hope that you’ll be able to visit them more often.

Off late though, I haven’t had the same amount of time to spend with them. The little time I have to myself I like to spend it on doing things I want to do.

It’s not that I don’t want to spend any time with you, it’s just that I don’t have the same amount of time to spend. I realise I sound quite arrogant in my previous statement, but its true.

Thatha and Pati, still are a big part of my life and I can’t imagine my life without them.

My Message To The Grands

When I Will Be 70

When I look into the future, I want to live upto 200 years (if possible). I want to see what the future will be like, and to learn from it.
Old age is like a second childhood, It is the time, when we see that the bud of our life is yet to bloom. It is an opportunity, to see what we planted through our whole life, which eventually grows and shoots the sky, smiling at the sun.

Senior Networking.

Media Influence

Nightingales Elder Day Care Centre is located in Malleswaram, Bangalore. On 26th July 2011 we took part in a meeting about media. Although the subject of conversation was not directly related to our project we still learnt a lot in the few hours we spent there.

Firstly, the seniors seemed well prepared with their speeches beforehand and intent on speaking for its own sake. Funnily, the discussion lacked a single path of logic and the speakers appeared to attend to be heard rather than to listen, respond and discuss (opinion).

Secondly, the elders we spoke to were vehemently opposed to being referred to as "old", and protested with such cries as "we are young at heart!" This begs the question, what is wrong with being old? This rejection of self-image probably stems from the abundance of negative stereotypes associated with aging. Moreover the natural deterioration of mind and body is nothing to be ashamed of, yet the consequent dependency chagrins or burdens.

Media influence is likely the culprit. It, particularly advertisements, are designed to make us feel inadequate and insecure about balding, wrinkles, age spots and grey hairs, all of which were symbolic of wisdom in days not long gone by.

Although most stereotypes regarding senior citizens are harmless and fact-based, some
misconceptions perpetuated by the media can be offensive and misleading. Furthermore, many
advertisements and television programmes are designed to make the audience feel insecure about
wrinkles, age lines and spots, balding, grey hairs: the physical manifestation of a natural process.
Incidentally in most countries senior citizens watch more television than any other age group.

However a disproportional number of leading characters are of the same. This is contrary to the
obvious train of logic that dictates that the majority of viewers should be able to relate to the
majority of protagonists. This discrepancy indicates an underlying assumption that there is an ideal
age that all – if not most – people desire to exist at, and more importantly that this age is well below
65.

Religious Views

As I was talking to the father, he mentioned a lot of factors that makes the senior citizens close to the church or any other religious places. But the two most important factors that I think why religion is important to them is the reality of death and the other one is that most of them has been through a difficult life and come out of it while our generation is looked after well. So they get a feeling that they have no one to go to.

After days of talking to random senior citizens and priests, we decided to go to an old age home. And what I learnt from that was, the situation is very different over there compared the outside world. They are very dependent over there and they spoke a lot about family and children. But what I noticed talking to the senior citizens outside was that they consider themselves like any other normal person. They cannot accept the fact that they are old that easily. But all of them who I have spoken to are very religious and they will always be.

UCF