noreply@blogger.com (mst) — Sun, 27 May 2007 10:24:00 +0000

WOMEN IN FOCUS: TEN YEARS ON - September 2008

In 1998, a new and stunning portrait collection by Derek Tamea exploded onto the London art scene. Inspired by the ordination of the first woman priest, this unique collection set out to illustrate the considerable and varied roles played by women in the latter part of the 20th Century.

Lauded by press and public alike, the exhibition is still hailed as one of the defining moments in British portrait photography.

WOMEN IN FOCUS has toured the country attracting much critical acclaim wherever it has been shown, not just for the quality of Derek's photography, but for the sense that, just for a moment, you are sharing the lives of his subjects.

To celebrate ten years of WOMEN IN FOCUS, Derek is delighted to announce the launch of an almost entirely new collection of portraits which will make its debut at Woburn Abbey on 20 September 2008. The Exhibition opens to the public from 21-28 September.

This visually spectacular collection not only appeals to the aesthetic but is also a piece of inspirational contemporary history, a record of the enormous strides women are taking to achieve their place in society at the dawn of the 21st Century.

Derek has compiled over a hundred colour portraits which include ambassadors, actresses and airline pilots, priests, politicians and provosts, chief constables and captains of industry, engineers, entertainers and entrepreneurs - each of them a woman.

Derek would like to thank William Lash, Comptroller at Woburn Abbey, for all his help, advice and very considerable patience with the logistical side of organising the location for Women in Focus: Ten Years On.

The Tavistock Trust for Aphasia

APHASIA: is a communication disability that occurs when the language centres of the brain are damaged. It is usually caused by stroke but can also be caused by brain haemorrhage, head injury or tumours.

Oral communication is one of the most necessary forms of human function. Imagine not being able to tell someone how you feel, what you want to eat or even something as simple as you are too hot or too cold. Aphasia is a crippling and debilitating condition which strikes thousands of people in the UK alone every year yet remains almost unheard of outside the community who suffer this problem. Approximately 250,000 people currently have permanent Aphasia; many others are on the long and difficult journey to either partial or full recovery.

One of the primary causes of Aphasia in the UK is strokes. In 1988, the 14th Duke of Bedford, then the Marquess of Tavistock, suffered a massive stroke from which he nearly died. He recovered but was left with Aphasia. This led him to found the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia to work towards helping others who suffer this little-known and cruel condition. Sadly, the Duke died in 2003 but his Foundation continues under the guidance of Henrietta, Duchess of Bedford.

Derek has been fortunate to have been involved with Woburn Abbey for a great many years and has photographed both the late Duke and Henrietta, Duchess of Bedford on many occasions. In this anniversary year of his celebrated exhibition, Women in Focus (which features photographs of both the present Duchess and Henrietta, Duchess of Bedford), Derek has chosen to support the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia. The profits from sales of his exhibition photographs, both on the preview day and through his website, will be donated to the Trust.

For further details please contact Derek on 07702 607142.

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