In the immediate aftermath of the demise of Communist leader Nicolae Ceaucescu in 1989, much media coverage centred on the conditions of the country's orphanages where thousands of children has been left in squalor under the regime. Suffolk photographer James Fletcher visited the country fifteen years after the revolution to discover how the lives of these people have developed in those intervening years. He comments, "It was so important for me to spend a lot of time with the people to gain their trust and try to empathise with their lives. I hope this is conveyed in my photographs. I found the experience very emotional, seeing those who live in complete deprivation and experience a life most could not even begin to imagine.  | | One of the images from the exhibition. |
"I feel it is important to show the pictures to as many people as possible to give an insight into the diversity of other cultures. I hope my work evokes some sort of emotion whether that is sadness, desperation or laughter." Fletcher's photos have already received a number of awards, and you can view them at the Dig by Gallery in the Mercury theatre, Colchester until the 15th of April. The exhibition will then move on to the Les Livres Gallery at Colchester Library between 8th-30th May and at Chelmsford Library from June 19th to July 17th. | 
