If you’re getting up there in age and feel like the best is behind you, fear not! We have people like Sydney resident Eileen Kramer, who shows that age truly doesn’t matter when it comes to following your heart.
At the ripe age of 104, Eileen says, “O-L-D. Take it out of the dictionary… but I have been around for a long time.” Not only did she submit a self-portrait of herself, but she also does choreography, and performs on stage.
Still an Amateur
While Eileen is still an amateur and is more of a dancer than a painter – she didn’t let that stop her from giving it her all, and she just submitted her painting this week. She says she knows she is unlikely to win, but, “None of us are Picasso or Matisse or Brecht or any of those people, ” she said. “Just do it if it makes you feel happy.”
“It’s just a little old painting, I don’t expect anything. But it’s very exciting at the same time!”, she continued.
The most amazing thing of all is the fact that Eileen has lived longer than the Art Competition’s history, which is already an astounding 98 years.
“She’s still got a lust for life and she’s having a go, ” said Brett Cuthbertson, a chief packer who works in the Art Gallery of NSW building, where the art competition is being hosted. He said that in the more than thirty years he’d been involved in the competition, he’d never seen anyone like Kramer before.
“She’s incredible, ” he said. And he isn’t wrong.
What is Eileen’s secret? In her own words, “I think I’ve been a good girl, ” said Eileen, while laughing. “And I’m creative. Everybody is creative. Creativity is built into us.”
Eileen’s Submission Shows Age Doesn’t Matter
Without further ado, here is Eileen’s submission. I don’t know about you, but I think maybe dancing wasn’t her only true calling, after all.
