Breaking Barriers With Brushstrokes

At 69 years old, Kathleen Cosgrove was enjoying life. She had raised her family, sold her company, and at 51 years old, went back to school where she graduated from the Pacific Northwest College of Art with a BFA. She was making art and she was happy. Then COVID came along.

Suddenly, age felt like a roadblock rather than a badge of honor. Kathleen found herself confined to her home, labeled as "vulnerable," despite recently conquering over 120 miles of the Camino de Santiago. Frustration simmered, fueled by the unfairness of it all.

Age discrimination, particularly for women, has been around for a long time. Studies reveal sobering statistics: 53% of women over 65 face ageism in the workplace, and older women are 40% more likely to experience discrimination in health care compared to men. For women of color, those percentage points grow even higher. The stark reality is that age bias permeates numerous facets of life.

Lucky for us, Kathleen’s an artist, and artists know that the best way to deal with emotions and frustrations is to make something about it. Harnessing her fury, she embarked on a journey titled Feeling Our Age. The mission? To amplify the voices of 60 women over 60, sharing their reflections on aging.

Finding the women turned out to be a pretty easy job. Women wanted to share their personal stories and challenges of what it’s like to be their age. What happened next, though, is what surprised Kathleen the most.