What We Can All Learn From Older Animals

It is not hard to argue that we live in a youth-centric culture, one in which young age and beauty are almost synonymous. And that obsession does not end with humans. Puppies and kittens melt hearts; images and videos of baby animals flood the Internet. But rarely does an image of an animal in old age ignite the same interest and adoration.

Mortality and aging are never an easy subject to discuss. Finding meaning and joy in life in the face of physical limitations and challenges.

In an unusual project, Isa Leshko, a fine-art photographer who lives in Philadelphia, set out to capture glimpses of animals at a time when they rarely attract much admiration or media attention — in their twilight years (1). The photographs, part of a series called “Elderly Animals”, are intimate and at times gripping (2).

You can view more photos at Ms. Leshko’s Web site (3), which also contains a short documentary by Mark and Angela Walley about her “Elderly Animals” project (4).

Links:
1. The New York Times Well Blogs. What we can learn from old animals. December 29, 2011.
2. http://isaleshko.com/elderly-animals/
3. http://www.isaleshko.com/index.cfm
4. http://vimeo.com/29632448