While there has been much research into ageing population statistical models, data and financial impact, very little has been done to visualise, or narrate, the impact of an ageing population on social structures, family units and our life choices.

Design Interaction graduate Jaemin Paik’s project, When We All Live to 150, aims to do just this. Through mockumentary, photos, drawings and infographics, Jaemin traces the story of 75-year-old Moyra and her considerations around marriage, retirement and education – decisions that she will take not just once in her extended life, but probably twice, or possibly three times. 

‘This is based on a real couple in Vauxhuall that I spent time with,’ says Jaemin. ‘It’s about intergenerational issues and how to support an increasing number of elderly dependents within a family.’

Jaemin explains that the aim of the project was to provoke debate and question the validity of the existing family structure with a life expectancy of 150 years. 

Do we really want to stay married to the same person for that long? Could marriage be a long-term 30-year contract that comes up for renewal? What happens when people start having children later?

‘The idea is to really question our pre-conceptions of older people and how we might include services that we can prepare for a different future,’ says Jaemin.