Photographer Tyla is bringing MS into focus

A photographer hopes to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis by documenting the lives of people with the condition.
Tyla Fairbairn, who dedicated the final year of her photography degree to document what living with MS is like.Tyla Fairbairn, who dedicated the final year of her photography degree to document what living with MS is like.
Tyla Fairbairn, who dedicated the final year of her photography degree to document what living with MS is like.

Tyla Fairbairn was inspired to understand more about the illness because her grandad is a sufferer, and dedicated the final year of her photography degree at the University of Sunderland to discovering what living with MS is really like.

Through still imagery and audio recordings, she has captured the problems people face in her project, A Silent Struggle.

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The 20-year-old, said: “I started looking into multiple sclerosis and first decided to base a project on my grandad. The project allowed me to not only understand the effects of MS on my grandad, but also allowed me to spend more time with him and create a closer bond.

“I also wanted to show that MS affects people in different ways, how they deal with those situations, and provide an insight into the process and development of the condition, and the positivity the individuals have to be able to cope.”

The project provides an insight into the lives of four people who talk about their own experience of MS.

Multiple sclerosis is a condition that can affect the brain as well as the spinal cord and includes symptoms such as impairment of speech and mobility problems and blurred vision.

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Jenna Mahoney, from the MS Society, said: “We applaud Tyla’s efforts to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis – an unpredictable condition that affects more than 100,000 people in the UK.”

To find out more about Tyla’s work, visit www.tylafairbairn.com and to watch A Silent Struggle visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=jb1zs_12gEo.