From Judith and the  Hetherington family

June 2014

This year we marked the third anniversary of Tim’s death,in April, with 'Still Kicking', a really great evening to launch the Tim Hetherington Trust (Tim's Trust) and the Tim Hetherington Visual Media Grant.

It was a wonderful opportunity to look  at and  remind ourselves that his inspiration survives in the lives and works of the many people he touched.  As I said at the event, “not an hour, not a half hour goes by without Tim jumping into my head.  He's omnipresent.”

I joke that Tim is in heaven teaching God photography; playing chess moving us all around, keeping us all busy, making sure we don't slacken off, tirelessly working to his exacting standards.  It's a tall order.  One that I'm honoured, with the help of others, to undertake. Through Tim's Trust we will enable others to continue in Tim's footsteps – to challenge, highlight 'man's inhumanity to man' in all its guises, to make the world a better place.

Much has been documented and discussed about Tim’s very public death and the events surrounding it. Whilst acknowledging the enormity of  his loss I do believe that it is more important  to focus on what Tim achieved in his lifetime and how his  legacy  can help others.  It seems  the only way to make any sense of the senseless. Tim was on an odyssey in many places, including Libya, pursuing his raison d’être to get to the core of his subjects and themes, addressing them directly.  His art was truly a broad  hybrid as he experimented with all the  methods and mediums available to him.

I think that Tim believed in the redemptive power of art; that belief, affinity,  and empathy will lead to understanding, and that understanding will lead full circle back to belief, affinity, empathy, and hopefully  onto action. Like many, Tim wanted to make a difference to the world and he did.  He gave it his best.  Tim inspires me to do the same with my life, or what is left of it!

My hope  is that Tim's work and legacy will continue to inspire everyone, each in their own way. 

I take this opportunity to thank everyone who has given me and my family such amazing support over the past three years, not only those who knew Tim, or knew of Tim, but those who have come to know Tim through his work since his death; all who have emailed, commented or contacted me or the Trust, telling how Tim through his work or mentoring, has helped to change their lives.

There is still much work to do and I would be grateful for your continuing support to ensure Tim's work lives on, inspiring and enabling us through Tim’s Trust to help others, as he would have wished. Please donate, buy a picture or a book, keep in touch by looking at our new website www.timhetheringtontrust.org which ,after much technical delay, the Trust is now updating  and committing to keep you up to date.