This autumn, The Photobook Project CIC will be giving you a window into their vast collection of beautiful photographs (and books), produced across various projects in the UK and beyond. Founded by Ellie Robinson-Carter in 2015, the newly Devon-based CIC aims to give people living with dementia the power to document, share and celebrate their own lives and perspectives. The photos on display reveal moments of joy, beauty, meditation, companionship and silliness, redirecting the conversation around diagnosis away from ‘loss’ and towards the possibilities that still remain in life.

The Photobook Project invites people living with dementia and their wider communities to capture their experiences. In response to a chosen theme (like a season or a meaningful object), participants take photographs on disposable cameras alongside other creative activities, such as writing poems, painting flowers or making cyanotypes. The often tender and breathtaking results are used to create a series of photobooks. Each collection is kept at the heart of the participating group’s community (for example, a community centre) and each participant is gifted a photobook of their choice. The arts are a powerful tool for people living with dementia. Keeping these photobooks and sharing them with family and friends enables participants to recollect memories, and embrace the possibility of living well with dementia.

The Photobook Project has been rolled out across the world, including partnerships with Sensory Trust in Cornwall, Run Tomo in Japan and Humanitas Deventer in the Netherlands. Since making Devon The Photobook Project’s home earlier this year, they are very eager to start working with communities here.

 Private viewing and Amanze short film screening: Thursday 8th September, 5pm-7pm

A private viewing for the exhibition, featuring an introductory talk from The Photobook Project’s Artistic Director, Ellie Robinson-Carter, will take place on Thursday 8th September. There will also be a screening of their short film, Amanze, which captures the life and experiences of The Photobook Project Ambassador, Ronald Amanze, a music producer who is living with dementia.

 VENUE: WALKWAY GALLERY, EXETER PHOENIX