AN ART exhibition is encouraging people to confront the realities of living with dementia in recognition of World Alzheimer’s Month.

‘Embracing Change, Embracing Dementia’ is a showcase of three artists working in visual art, sound, and film whose work is helping others understand the condition.

The exhibition is hosted by B-side, the art organisation which works to highlight the marginal and often forgotten aspects of coastal communities.

Throughout September groups around the world concentrate their efforts on raising awareness of Alzheimer’s, the most common form of dementia which inpairs mental functioning.

Jenni Dutton’s stitched portraits, developed while she was caring for her mother, reflect the ageing process and the erosive effect of the illness on the individual.

She said: “The series developed as my mum went into a nursing home, I continued to make the work which had become now about ageing as well about loss of memory and the development of dementia.

"I think it’s important that we do not shy away from some of the more difficult images of ageing.”

Visitors will also hear the work of composer Marc Yeats created following his year-long residency at hospitals with dementia teams.

The six-part choral work, sung by Choir by the Sea, uses fragments of speech to create a thought-provoking work on the relationship between memory and music.

The exhibition also includes a short documentary by Jordi Robert capturing the everyday routine of a dementia patient and highlights the social and personal repercussions of living with the disease. Jordi said his project also started when he watched his mother suffer with the illness.

He said: “My mother was a strong, positive caring woman, When a few years ago she starting losing her memory, she became fragile, insecure and sad. I thought, this is a different person, my mother is gone. But is she gone?”

The free exhibition is in Outpost, Fortuneswell, from tomorrow until Thursday, noon to 5pm.

On Thursday, B-side will host a discussion for artists, healthcare professionals and anyone who has an interest or personal experience of dementia between 1pm and 5pm. Tickets cost £5 and bookable online at www.b-side.org.uk .