Dementia series exhibition ideas.

[EzraRoth89]

Hi everyone,

I am currently studying at Falmouth and would like to ask members of this group for some opinions for my research.

How would you like to see work like the images below, taken from Kija Lucas’ Collections from Sundown, showcased?

The images are about Lucas’ grandmother suffering from dementia. Do you think it would be too insensitive to place the images around a hospital/care home.

Would a street exhibition be a good idea or would they be ignored by the public?

Would an unusual place, like the cafe in the crypt in London be a good place to showcase the work? Would an unusual place limit the amount of people who attend the exhibition?

Any other places you believe these types of images would make an impact?

Thank you for your opinions and taking the time to read.

 

[Harlequin565]

Hi Sean, welcome to TP!

Do you think it would be too insensitive to place the images around a hospital/care home.

[caveat - my opinion!]
If you think about it, an exhibition is about getting people to see the images. If there is a message in the photos, then you're 'preaching to the converted' by displaying in a care home as many of them have areas for those suffering with dementia. A hospital might work better, but if you're hoping for people to take the time to appreciate the images, both those places would be unlikely to get much attention as the staff/visitors are likely to have other things on their mind. I would imagine both places would want calming abstracts rather than images about what is ultimately a very sad, difficult and upsetting condition. If you're talking about an exhibition with glasses of wine and invitations, then I definitely think it would be inappropriate in a care home/hospital.

Again - In My Opinion, the images don't have "impact" at first glance. I had a brief look at the website and they are a collection of still life letters and notes that need to be looked at and read. Assuming I'm a "normal" person, I might stop on the street to have a look at one or two images, then I'd probably move on. But that would likely be because the images don't work for me (based on the very little I've seen).

A cafe or library would likely be the best place. People are pausing and taking a break, and would be more likely to spend a bit of time with them. If it's a wine/invitations type exhibition this would be perfect as people could sit down in comfort.

I'm sure others will have opinions, but that's mine!

 

[TheBigYin]

Hmmm...

not entirely clear what you're hoping for here to be honest.

Having looked up the work in question - it would appear that the bulk of the work is not actually images but collages of notes or framed notes written by the artists grandmother. So, not strictly "images" per se, but instead an art installation.

Now - firstly, I would have thought that the artist would have wanted some kind of say in where their work was to be presented, especially in another country (artist being USA based). Of course, it's also entirely possible that you're actually working as an agent to get "exposure" of the work - but in that case, frankly, If you're actually asking this kind of question here, then I think that you're the wrong person to be acting as an agent.

Of course - it could be that you're just being unclear in your questions, and that you have a body of work similar in nature to the above, and you're asking for yourself... In which case, my advice would be quite simple - contact a local branch of the relevant charity and ask their opinion - they work day-in-day-out with people suffering from this awful affliction - both sufferers and carers, and they would be much better placed to comment on the sensitivity of where things were to be viewed...

 

[lindsay]

If you are studying at Falmouth, then I'm guessing it's on their renowned BA course in photography or even the Masters. If that's the case, your first port of call would be your tutor who should be able to advise, guide and challenge your ideas. If not all that, then I think Mark above has valid points which you might like to address straight away in order to ensure you are asking the right forum.

 

[TimHughes]

Which course at Falmouth are you on? The reference looks like art and this is a photo forum?

If your subject is dementia and it's the photography course, I'd start with why I'm making the images and what impact do I want them to have and go from there.

A good friend of mine is on the photography course at the moment and she made an exhibition about deforestation by hanging huge pictures of trees off c-stands in a place that had been recently clear-cut. That had impact and got attention.