www.thanos.org
FIAT-IFTA Exhibition
MANIFESTO
visibility & voice
4-6 / 06 / 2026
BEFA Forum Düsseldorf
The World Organization
of Funeral Operatives
A Manifesto of Visibility and Voice
is grounded in the lived
experience of women working
within funeral and death care.
The exhibition brings together
personal narratives that speak
not only to pride, purpose and
professional commitment,
but also to complexity, exclusion
and moments of being unseen.
By centring the woman herself
— her voice, perspective and
experience — the Manifesto
offers a collective act of individual
truth, recognition and reflection.
Alison Crake
Chair of FIAT-IFTA Global Education Committee
Project Lead and Curator for “A Manifesto of Visibility and Voice”
MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
Dear friends,
Alison Crake
Chair of FIAT-IFTA Global Education Committee
Project Lead and Curator for “A Manifesto of Visibility and Voice”
A warm welcome to “A Manifesto of Visibility and Voice” - a curated exhibition that places
women at the very centre of the narrative, foregrounding lived experience, personal
perspective and individual voice. This project brings together contributions from across the
worldwide funeral and death care professions, not to showcase organisations or brands, but
to illuminate the women behind the work: how they see, feel, navigate and shape their
professional worlds.
At its heart, the Manifesto is about presence and representation. It is concerned with visibility
not as status, but as recognition - and with voice not as authority, but as truth. The exhibition
invites viewers to encounter each contribution first and foremost as a personal act of
expression, while acknowledging the professional contexts that sit around it.
Together, the works form a collective statement that is both intimate and grounded in the lived
experience of women working within funeral and death care. It brings together personal
narratives that speak not only to pride, purpose and professional commitment, but also to
complexity, exclusion and moments of being unseen. By centring the woman herself
- her voice, perspective and experience - the Manifesto offers a collective act of individual
truth, recognition and reflection.
This exhibition is not a singular narrative, but a shared space: one shaped by honesty,
a collective presence, and the quiet power of women often unseen and voices too often
unheard.
Hear the voice of...
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MICAELA DONGO, PERU
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA, NIGERIA
CÂNDIDA RODRÍGUES, SPAIN
TAMARA BULLOCK, USA
EWA SMUGA, POLAND
INMA BATISTA, SPAIN
DOMINIKA HERMANOWICZ, POLAND
ADRIANA PIMENTEL, BRAZIL
AMANDA CASTRO, BRAZIL
CRIS BÉO, BRAZIL
MARIEL GRANATO, BRAZIL
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ORLANDA CARROLL, UNITED KINGDOM
MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
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MICHELLE BELL, CANADA
NAIARA ZUGAZAGA, SPAIN
VIRGINIA GALLARDO, MEXICO
CLÁUDIA MOITA, PORTUGAL
DAISY E. S. ANDERSEN, NORWAY
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ANUSKA MELIÁ PINTO, SPAIN
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NURIA CAPDEVILA, SPAIN
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SANDRA NAVAS, SPAIN
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PATRYCJA OWCZARZAK, POLAND
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JASMINA BABAJIĆ, SLOVENIA
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JACKIE LYMN ROSE, UNITED KINGDOM
JENNIFER MULDOWNEY, IRELAND
Hear the voice of...
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DR. LUCIA DICKINSON, USA
DR. JENNIFER LARES, USA
JOÉL SIMONE MALDONADO, USA
THERESA DONNELLY-HYDE, UNITED KINGDOM
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ELIZABETH PINELO & MARIANA VACA, MEXICO
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KATARZYNA SUPA, POLAND
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ANDREIA PAZ, PORTUGAL
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VANDA CASTRO, PORTUGAL
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RITA HORTA, PORTUGAL
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RITA ANTUNES, PORTUGAL
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CLAUDIA MINHA HENRIQUES, BRAZIL
FABIANA WITTHOEFT, BRAZIL
Hear the voice of...
MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
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LUCIANE FRANÇA, BRAZIL
MILENA ARAGÃO, BRAZIL
NATASHA ALCURI, BRAZIL
STEPHANIE SALVADOR, BRAZIL
TAILANE SOUZA, BRAZIL
WANDERLÉIA FANINI, BRAZIL
HYRLENE DE SÁ, BRAZIL
MAYNARA M. LIMA, BRAZIL
Hear the voice of...
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Translation of the text on the photograph:
“Life is a brief thread: a minute, a fragment, an instant that can unite us or separate us before
disappearing. That swiftness taught me to look with greater intention, to value what happens in
silence. In my work, that awareness became a guide: observing, understanding, and analysing
turned into my tools for leading with humanity. We are everything and nothing at the same time;
life is a paradox that demands living with intention without taking ourselves too seriously.”
Hilos de la Vida
Threads of Life
MICAELA DONGO
MICAELA DONGO
PERU
PERU
Behind this project
I chose to create a collage using the image of hands that carry years of life, memories,
and lessons. In the background, red threads represent what life truly is: a minute, a thread,
a paradox. We live with intention, yet we also learn not to take everything too seriously.
Since taking on the role of supervising the culture and organization of Jardines de la Paz
Funeral Home and Cemeteries; my family’s business in Peru, I’ve discovered that every day is a
new adventure, always offering something to learn.
During this process, I realized something essential: true leadership begins with knowing your
value, understanding what you bring to the table, and communicating it with clarity and
humanity. Not just to be taken seriously, but to earn genuine respect and create a space where
others also feel seen and heard through your actions.
Because of that, observing, analyzing, and understanding people have become my most
valuable tools to lead with humanity, accompany grief, navigate change, and practice
compassion with intention.
This collage reflects what I have learned at Jardines de la Paz: life is short, yet it is the place
where our leadership, our choices, and our hands can leave a meaningful impact on those
around us.
Micaela Dongo is the Commercial Director of Jardines de la Paz,
the first Peruvian organization dedicated exclusively to funeral
services. Founded in 1990, by Julio Dongo to professionalize
end-of-life care in Peru, the company has expanded nationally under
the leadership of his son, Renato Dongo and now includes funeral
centers, cemeteries, chapels, wakes and comprehensive funeral
services across Lima, Trujillo and Chiclayo.
Micaela, representing the third generation, leads a team of more than
500 dedicated professionals, thereby ensuring continuity with the
company’s long-term goals and values.
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
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Pioneering excellence
with compassion
and integrity
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
SCAN TO WATCH VIDEO
Pioneering excellence
with compassion
and integrity
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
Pioneering excellence
with compassion
and integrity
to decide which one to
present
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BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
BOLANLE OKUSANYA FEYITA
NIGERIA
NIGERIA
Behind this project
The images I have provided for the exhibition span several years - evident not only in the
work itself, but also in my personal journey and physical growth along the way.
They offer a glimpse into the rich diversity of cultures, tribes, and traditions that define
funeral practice in Nigeria. It is a landscape so complex and multidimensional that it can
take a lifetime to truly understand. Operating within Nigeria - like much of Africa - means
working in a deeply traditional and often male-dominated environment. In many instances,
women’s voices are quietened within a predominantly patriarchal structure, requiring us to
navigate and challenge both horizontal and vertical barriers in society.
Across Africa, even in death, there remains a profound inequality between men and women.
Women are often short-changed when a death occurs - whether as widows, daughters, or
even as the deceased themselves - through disparities in recognition, decision-making,
inheritance, and the dignity afforded in death and memorialisation.
In my journey, I have been intentional about confronting mediocrity in both input and output,
striving to uphold excellence, dignity, and integrity in all that I do. I have also remained
committed to creating opportunities for women - designing systems and schedules that are
flexible and supportive, enabling women to thrive across the different spheres of their lives.
Bolanle Okusanya Feyita is a third-generation funeral services
specialist with 20 years of experience in the industry.
From 1994 to 2014, she worked at MIC Royal Ltd., a company founded
by her grandfather and later managed by her father, and in 2015,
she established LTJ Funerals International and the Olatunji Okusanya
Memorial Foundation.
The foundation was born out of the need to preserve the charitable
legacies of the late Mr Olatunji Adedeji Okusanya (Tunji Snr) and late
Mr Olatunji Abimbola Okusanya (Tunji Jnr) both directors of MIC Royal
Ltd. who sadly died in the ill-fated Associated Airline plane crash on the
3rd October 2013 in Lagos while on a funeral undertaking assignment.
Today LTJ Funerals International provides innovative funeral services
that honor the lives of the deceased while serving families with
excellence, integrity, and dignity throughout Nigeria and beyond.
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
CÂNDIDA RODRÍGUES
CÂNDIDA RODRÍGUES
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Un Viaje a través de
la materia y el espíritu
A Journey through
Matter and Spirit
This artwork was originally sent as a large scale canvas print.
SPAIN
SPAIN
Behind this project
I chose this canvas work because it synthesizes my trajectory and intention: I come from the
creative fashion world, where aesthetic sensitivity and visual storytelling are essential,
and I find those same qualities in the funerary field, a space full of symbolism, care,
and memory.
The canvas allows me to combine visualization as if it were layers of transparency, color, and
gesture to express the presence and strength of the women who inhabit and transform that
world, making visible roles and intimate rituals that are often overlooked.
It is an intimate and public format at once: it gathers my personal experience and makes it
legible to others, creating a bridge between the emotional and the social.
For these reasons I submit this piece as a summary of my situation: it best articulates my
background in fashion, my sensitivity to mourning, and my commitment to female visibility
in funerary practices.
Cándida Rodrigues is a funeral director, embalmer, and creator
specializing in grief support. After more than 30 years dedicated to
fashion design and artisanal millinery, she has developed a unique
career that brings together art, technique, and care. Her background
in the creative field has given her a deep sensitivity to form, color,
and detail - skills she now applies within the funeral profession.
Trained in thanatopraxy and embalming, she has expanded her
expertise internationally, studying and working in countries such as
Belgium, France, and Ireland. Her approach combines technical
precision, continuous research, and a human, respectful perspective
on the process of farewell.
As the creator of memorial jewelry under the project “Whispers of an
Angel,” she transforms memory into tangible objects, offering
comfort and closeness to families.
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
TAMARA BULLOCK
TAMARA BULLOCK
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Serving Families with Grace,
Strength, and Purpose
USA
USA
My journey into funeral service was shaped by early loss, faith, and a deep commitment to
care. Nearly 25 years ago, I stepped into a world that was overwhelmingly male-dominated
and often resistant to women. In those early years, I experienced moments in which my
safety and personal boundaries were compromised. Rather than silencing myself
or accepting what was unsafe, I made the difficult decision to leave that environment
- an important turning point in reclaiming my voice and professional dignity.
The families I serve sustain me. Their trust reaffirms my belief that funeral service is, at its
heart, about caring for the living: listening deeply, honouring individuality, and guiding
families through grief with empathy and respect. Over time, I have developed a hands-on
practice rooted in compassion, honesty, and careful attention to detail, ensuring that every
farewell truly reflects the life it honours.
The photographs I have chosen reflect my everyday life. As part of the new Harlem
Renaissance, I dress with intention during services to honour both the families I serve and
the legacy of those who came before me in Harlem’s funeral tradition. One image shows my
children, who are my greatest motivation. Another highlights the women-led team I created,
and the final photograph shows the community award I received as Funeral Director of the
Year in 2024.
Behind this project
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice
Tamara Bullock is a first-generation funeral director and the owner of
Bullock Funeral Services in Harlem, New York. Her path into funeral
service began in her teenage years following the deaths of her father
and grandmother - experiences that revealed to her the compassion
and dignity at the heart of the profession. With nearly 25 years’
experience as a licensed funeral director and embalmer, Tamara is
known for her hands-on, deeply personal approach to caring for
families. A devoted single mother of two, she balances faith, family,
and professional purpose, and today is proud to lead Harlem’s only
woman-owned funeral home.
EWA SMUGA
EWA SMUGA
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Memorial Designer
– Purest –
EWA SMUGA
EWA SMUGA
Memorial Designer
– Purest –
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MANIFESTO Visibility and Voice