This week, the Musée de l’Homme unveils Les Grands Âges, a new exhibition dedicated to the stages of human life. The photographic series brings together photographer Nikos Aliagas, whose work often explores the passage of time, and Samuel Pavard, a biodemographer and professor at the museum.
Amid a global demographic shift marked by declining birth rates and rising life expectancy, the exhibition offers a poignant portrayal of old age, deepening the discourse around society’s relationship with the ageing body and its ongoing pursuit of immortality.
When Bryan Johnson, the anti-aging entrepreneur known for his “don’t die” philosophy, walked the runway for Matières Fécales at Paris Fashion Week last month, it singled a growing tension in how contemporary culture perceives aging, a prospect increasingly framed by anxiety and rejection rather than acceptance.
Les Grands Âges serves as a striking counterpoint. Through intimate portraits of elderly individuals, faces left unaltered by cosmetic procedures and bodies unshaped by the promise of eternal youth, it proposes aging as both privilege and beauty, challenging a culture obsessed with preservation.
Alongside the images, the exhibition traces the natural history of old age, highlighting the fundamental role of older generations even when life expectancy was far shorter. The narrative then turns to the modern era, confronting how advanced age intersects with today’s global crises, from climate change and epidemics to cancer and degenerative diseases driven by pollution.
Running from 8 April 2026 to 3 January 2027, Les Grands Âges is a beautiful, potent reminder of humanity—one that we should all take time out of our (potentially eternal) lives to view.
