Tag Archives: photography

Picture this: an eight-year-old boy experimenting with a camera at his home place, contentedly snapping away at the small things a curious young child observes in his back yard and a little further afield in the meadows and forests of southern Germany. For a while, the young German boy loses all interest in photography, until a holiday to Ireland as an adult inspires him and re-kindles his passion for the artform. The trip which got Carsten Krieger so hooked on Ireland prompted him to move to the emerald isle permanently in 2002. And the re-location revived a childhood fascination with nature, bringing about a career change from paediatric nursing to freelance photography. Since settling here, Carsten Krieger has photographed and written numerous books on Ireland’s landscape, nature and heritage. And now, 22 years on and almost 20 books later, the renowned photographer, author and environmentalist, who lives in Kibaha on the Loop Head Peninsula, has produced a new book entitled …

A UNIQUE exhibition of photographs by a Ukrainian Woman living in a Gort is being launched this coming Sunday, March 26 in The Hidden Gem Café in Bridge Street.  ‘Gort Night Shadows’ is an exhibition of photographs of the town and its surroundings at night, accompanied by poetry about Ireland through the eyes of Polina Bashkina who arrived in Gort in March 2022 after fleeing the war in Ukraine.  The exhibition runs up to the end of April and all funds raised will be donated to Ukrainian Animal Charities. “I started learning to draw,” Polina said. “And I ran out of black paint first. No wonder: even being far away, you are attuned to the colour scheme of your country – to the darkness that is trying to absorb the light of my Ukraine. However, in Ireland, I discovered that black could be poetic.” Polina is a writer from Ukraine who temporarily lives in Gort due to the war in her country. In November 2021, Polina’s book …

IMAGES of a former Clare convent building feature in a new photography book that captures the eerie beauty of abandoned buildings the length and breadth of Ireland. The exact location of the convent has not been disclosed in order to deter vandals, but the black and white photos taken by Down native, Rebecca Brownlie, speak of a bygone era of prayer and sacrifice.   The images feature in Rebecca’s book Abandoned Ireland, which includes a total of 150 scenes from abandoned Big Houses to humble cottages, schools to prisons, churches and dance halls. Rebecca’s publisher, Merrion Press, said that while these buildings may now be abandoned, they are far from empty. “As a photographer, Brownlie’s instincts are remarkable,” her publicist said. “In the seemingly ruined and mundane she finds diamonds in the rough; her images of the ordinary ephemera of past lives – dusty love letters, rusting spectacles, photographs yellowed and curled with age – paint the pictures of real …

SOMETIMES raw and always authentic, John Kelly’s photographs capture Clare in all its glorious, local detail.  His pictures have a universal quality too. They celebrate humanity in all its forms and colours. They bear witness to moments and events that are truly extraordinary. They also find the magic in ordinary people going about their ordinary lives. From the intense stare of a rain-soaked Davy Fitzgerald, grappling with a defeat to Tipperary; to the serene faces of pilgrims at St Brigid’s Well in Liscannor, John Kelly’s interest lies in revealing what is going on beneath the surface.  A multi-award winner, John has been honoured many times by his peers. He has been personally singled out for praise by some of the greats of photojournalism including the UK’s Martin Parr and, most recently, by acclaimed portrait photographer, Peter Adams. As part of the Australian’s 40-year mission to track down some of the world’s best photographers, Peter came to Ireland to interview John …

PHOTOGRAPHER Beata Rosik recalls she felt “positively surprised and appreciated” when she discovered she was to be the recipient of Clare Arts Office’s TONES Studio Residency Award. Beata, who is living in Ennis having moved from her native Poland, hopes this honour will lead to greater recognition of her work, which has already received many prestigious international awards and appeared in exhibitions around the world. “It’s a really nice feeling that my work was noticed and appreciated here in Ireland. I’ve been photographing since I came here, which is about 14 years ago, it’s a long period of my life. “To be honest, it is not easy to be noticed even in your own country, or maybe in your own country in particular, let alone living abroad. I hope that this awareness will help me to develop, and hopefully be a small bit more recognised in Ireland. I’m confident to say that Ireland is my home and Ennis is my …

THE Clare Champion’s photographer John Kelly has been capturing the life and times of the Banner county for over 30 years. Last year was another successful one for John, adding Local Ireland photographer of the year 2021, to his ever growing catalogue of awards. Here he selects his favourite images from the year just gone by. We look forward with great anticipation to what he produces in 2022.

A NEW club for photography enthusiasts in the East Clare area is on the cards. The organisation, likely to get off the ground early next year, is the brainchild of well known photographer James Treacy. The Scariff man said he is currently looking to sign up new members for The East Clare Camera Club, which will involve a range of social and support activities for people in the region. Mr Treacy is currently running courses in Scariff and believes the interest in learning the skill is proof that a club would be a valuable amenity for the community. Already, Mr Treacy is anticipating that the club will run competitions every week and create a photography league. Members of the club will be encouraged to enter competitions nationwide and apply for membership of the Irish Photographic Federation As a former member of the Shannon Camera Club, Mr Treacy is drawing on the expertise of that group to help him with setting …

CLARECASTLE Tidy Towns have swept away the competition and cleaned up in a national contest. The local voluntary group have been named overall winners in the National Tidy Towns Photography Competition 2020. The winning photograph was taken by Christy Leyden, chairperson of Clarecastle Tidy Towns and depicted a wall mural by local artist Niamh Hickey in Haggart View, Creggaunahilla which forms part of a biodiversity project. The message of the mural, and the photograph is, “Never underestimate the power of a planted seed”. Judges in the competition found that the picture said a lot about the spirit of Tidy Towns, in building community pride and displaying the various talents we have in our community The bio-diversity project started in the spring of 2019 when at a Clarecastle Tidy Towns meeting the poor state of the plot fronting a wall in the housing estate was discussed and a pollinator friendly bed was suggested. A bedding plan was prepared with an emphasis …