Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Focus on photos at V&A dementia cafe
LOCALS living with dementia enjoyed the new photography exhibition at the V&A at an event this week.
The Dementia Cafes, run by Alzheimer Scotland, offer a welcoming environment where people living with dementia and their carers can socialise, share experiences, and engage in new activities.
At the April event, attendees were invited to find out more about V&A Dundee’s new exhibition, Photo City: How Images Shape the Urban World.
They were shown a series of photographs from the show, including the first aerial view photograph of Edinburgh from 1920, along with images of places such as New York, Paris and Las Vegas.
Old and new images of Dundee were also displayed and discussed, including photos from 1972 by Dundee-based photographer Joseph Mckenzie and the largescale collage portrait of Dundee made up of thousands of individual images created earlier this year by Japanese photographer, Sohei Nishino.
The cafes are now a regular monthly event at V&A Dundee thanks to support of players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
Malcolm Hazelwood, a regular attendee at the Dementia Cafe events at V&A Dundee, said: “My confidence has grown, and you feel loved again by other people. Where normally you just walk past them in the street.
“It’s a good help in getting over this dementia stigma because we’re still human and we still have brains, just ours work a little bit differently.”
Jeni Sinclair, Alzheimer Scotland dementia advisor, said: “It’s been brilliant to see these go from strength to strength – we now regularly attract around 50 local folk who are affected by dementia.
“It’s a great opportunity to come along and meet others in a similar position.
“We’ve seen friendships grow and develop, enabling rapport and connection. This, plus the fantastic setting means the cafes are a regular date in the diary for many.
Laura Chow, head of charities at People’s Postcode Lottery, said: “It’s wonderful to hear from people like Malcolm on the positive impact that attending the cafe has on people like him who are living with dementia, as well as their loved ones – the power of a good chat and a hot drink should never be underestimated!”
Jo Mawdsley, head of learning at V&A Dundee, said: “With the generous support provided by People’s Postcode Lottery and in partnership with Alzheimer Scotland we have been able to plan ahead and support monthly dementia cafe events throughout 2024, providing a welcoming and inspiring space in our community for those living with dementia.”
The V&A drop in Dementia cafes are free and run from 2-3.30pm on the third Tuesday of the month throughout 2024.