We've launched the first free library showing ‘positive and realistic’ images of older people in a bid to challenge negative and stereotypical views of later life. The images show a more realistic depiction of ageing and old age – to provide alternatives to the commonly used pictures of ‘wrinkly hands’ or walking sticks. The library, which contains over 1,500 images and will be regularly updated, offers organisations a wide selection of images that avoid stereotypes associated with older people.
The launch of the new resource follows our work on ageism and attitudes to ageing, including a recent report ‘An old age problem?’ which looked at depictions of later life across society. The report found that stock image libraries often use unrealistically positive or negative depictions of people in later life, and recommended that in both words and pictures, the media should attempt to communicate a more diverse representation of what it means to be older without resorting to stereotype and caricature. The image library coincides with our work on creating a suite of age-positive icons.
Images in the library are free for use and cover various themes related to ageing such as health, community activity and employment. You can access a preview of our image library below, which links to the full version, hosted on ResourceSpace. You can also download our simple guide to using the image library and guidance around commissioning age-positive images.
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