At the weekend, I held my first solo exhibition of the year, showcasing a reminiscence photography project commissioned by Gloucestershire Libraries and funded by the Arts Council. I collaborated with two care homes and a memory café in Gloucestershire to document people with dementia and memory loss’s favourite places in the Gloucestershire and capture their stories. It was important that I tell their stories in their own voices, so I recorded our memory sessions.
The exhibition was accessible, with image descriptions, captions, and audio of the participants explaining why these places were meaningful to them, which could be accessed via QR codes. It was great to use the skills I have learnt on my residency with Intransit Space to help with access to my work in a gallery setting.
It was rewarding to bring dementia and memory loss into the mainstream conversation in a public venue a shopping centre. Moreover, these memories and stories are now preserved for posterity, as they so often get forgotten.The exhibition was well-received, with wonderful feedback. For me, the best part was seeing the pride and joy of the participants as they saw themselves represented in an exhibition and interacted with one another
