CROSSING THE STREET

In an effort to add to the discourse around Direct Provision, to increase international awareness of its existence and in some small way to help bring an end to its madness, I will be adding my voice to those already active by starting a new series of photographs. Photographs of survivors of Direct Provision.
 Those who have passed through the system and come out the other end.

BACK IN SYNC!

 with this post I hope to catch up  as I draw closer to the end of the first series of leaving Dublin images. 84 will be the final total(83 published here to date) after three years and three months of shooting.

As with any large body of work there are anomalies when following a stringent M.O.and these two images fell out of sync with the blog because of other pressing issues with the work.

Exhibition preparation for example may have got in the way or a lack of fulfilment re release papers.

All is good now and I offer my apologies to all concerned.

                                             

Juan Miguel Gonzalez was photographed outside his apartment in Malahide before leaving after years working as an economist in a business in the town.He had been there for several years but now with his parents getting older,and the economy getting tighter, he felt it was time  to trip back to home.The beautiful city of Valladolid, Spain.

BELL BLUES,SWEET MUSIC!

Today marks the final day of Irelands E.U. Presidency  and the flow of people from this place has not subsided.Hundreds of thousands have left to date since the financial down turn.
Putting ones political head in the sand has always been the order of the day.
If we don't talk about it it will go away.
Lets tell a different story!!the good news!

That seems to be the approach.
The motto for our Irish governments term was the following Jobs,Stability and Growth.
If you take a very optimistic view the only area we seem to have made an impact would be on the stability front as we are still in the same sorry position as we were  at the start of the year when the presidency commenced!
Todays other news sees us slipping into recession after 6 months of negative growth.(That probably negates my previously over-optimistic stability point)Also after the appearance of the anglo tapes those who see the real architects of this realignment want to put duped, moneydrunk,gombeen Irish financial ex-wizards and retired alchemists,all into a big sack and beat them senseless. fantastic!!

AND STILL THEY LEAVE!!

All the euphoria and happy happy slappy,snappy communications coming out of Leinster house last week was a little to late for loads of restless spirits who find it a little bit of a grind to keep pushing,pushing,pushing against the relentless pressure to try something different.
So the tide of Emigration has not turned and people continue to leave apace.
It was finally and euphorically displayed as a victory last week that the Irish taxpayer will  bear the full extent of the losses at Anglo Irish Bank and Nationwide Building Society,No write down will occur and all of private investors will be paid in full after they should have lost their shirts!!

GOING,GOING,GONE!

This is Jose Carlos Lorenzo it was a pleasure to sit and pause  a while with him before he set off on an adventure. I first met Jose about 2 years ago when I did some prints for a college project he was doing. Now he has graduated with a degree he has decided to change it all around again and he is off to the Caribean.

CATCH UP 2

Its been a while, so before I launch myself into a new phase of posting I have something to put right.
Due to some confusion re release forms I was unable to publish this shot as it happened.
It was made last march outside the central bank of Ireland (a few weeks after the dis-assembly of the occupy Dame street protest)

RELATIVITY!

Yes! the internet makes the world a smaller and much more accessible place that's the truth.
Sure it's that concept which breathed life into my own blog, The Lilliputian, a photographic blog for the small world.
It's only when I stepped outside my hall door in Dublin and put one foot after the other that the scale of the world re-established itself in my head.
I have been away for over 8 weeks now and I have visited so many fantastic people in so many cities.
It took 23 hours to shoot us across the world to the Immigration Museum in Melbourne. Once arrived there Jet Lag and the hard work of winding up publicity to the opening of the "Leaving Dublin" exhibition immediatly took its toll and wiped out the first 12 days of the journey. (But what a 12 days!!)
It was only a week and a half into the trip that I started to wake up as I prepared to travel off to visit some of my sitters who had settled in Australia and New Zealand.

ALTERED STATES!

A couple of weeks ago I had an email from fellow photographer Ciara O'Halloran. She said she was leaving, and she would like to sit for me!
Of the  hundred plus people I have worked with on this project Ciara was my tenth photographer!
It is for me a resounding call of validation for my work when another of my number pays me the compliment of sitting with me before they leave  home for a new land.

Crackin' up!

It was great to meet last week with Paul Moloney a Dublin bar manager who was striking out to take on the world and do his level best to make a life for himself in Perth Australia.

Paul has secured sponsorship in Australia and so he is away to manage a bar and by now he is well into  his second week at work there.

I met Paul on Harry Street Dublin outside the famous Bruxelles pub and club where he fancied posing with one of Ireland's rock legends and larger than life personalities Philip Lynott.

Its hard to believe that Phil passed away over 25 years ago during the middle of our last big wave of emigration, around about the time that I lost all of my siblings to London.

Paul, a very happy and vibrant man told me after the shoot of his family and their connections to Australia through family members who had moved down through the years.

He was optimistic for his future and delighted for the opportunities which lay ahead but he did add,

"I have much love for this country, this city and my own home town. It's a place I would love to be able to excel in and ply my trade at a level I want to, with success....But......sadly.... IT AIN'T POSSIBLE."

We wish Paul the best and remember one of Phil's insightful lyrics of memory and loss

Iv'e been spending my time in the old town,

I sure miss you honey since your not around,

since your not around this old town.

I really look forward to catching up with Paul when I visit Perth in early November, by then hopefully he will be feeling at home!!

Both Ray and Artur were at hand to look after the technical stuff and as always all went smoothly with their guidance.

ON WE GO! FULL STEAM AHEAD!!

This next post brings together a lot of strands of the leaving dublin project.
Here we pause to take stock of all that has happened to date.
Make some new work.
And set out the plans for the way forward.
Lots has happened since my proposal back in february 2010 in my own life and indeed in the lives of my sitters.
Watching as they weave there new route through life I have come to accept that this is the natural order of things.
In Ireland we are at the mercy of all sorts of external influences and as the international markets agitate against the Euro we are in a very sad state,but no worse than before and Ireland and the Irish will abide. We must deride those who sold us the false dreams of 1973,and Indeed Lisbon 2 in 2009 just before the real slide started.We are now strapped fully to the E.U.mast and must take whatever come its way with no real say anymore. C'est la vie.
Julie Mitchel married last weekend,Tady Walshes wife Milena just gave birth in Quimper ,France, Gareth Doolin just posted a happy picture of himself and his daughter Macey on Facebook,Linda dePaor settled in New Zealand and has given birth to a beautiful baby boy since!!
So goes it and as the months and years pass by the lives of my sitters tell to me the story of the new Irish, rising,moving and overcoming adversity.Their stories into the future  are for me what is important so it is my plan now to follow and document further the lives of my sitters and to follow them to the four corners of the world to see how they are getting on.
Some initial manoeuvres have been carried out back home and I am glad to report that Jacinta Sheerin,Ryan Cronin Neilan,and Conor mc Mahon are all doing well.
I have just made my first European visit yesterday I visited Tady Walsh, Milena and their baby hopefully this is the forerunner to  a serious session to follow in october in Australia and Possibly New Zealand!!
On my return to Ireland at the end of the month I will endeavor to document the early morning emptiness of all of the sites used to date for the leaving dublin project,hopefully the weather will be on my side!!
The Shot above is of Louise Haslett ,her daughter Ella,and her son Ewan.
Louise and co have by now departed for Brisbane Australia,her husband left ahead of them to set things in order while Ella was completing her Junior cert.
I talked at length with Louise about her departure and she told me that Although things were tough in her profession right now(she is an architect) finance was not he primary motivator for her move.But,the current sentiment in our country has made it easier for people like Louise to think of life further afield and to consider all sorts of different scenarios as an improvement of their lot.
The work was made in their back garden in Swords.Ewan skates on a Rich Gilligan inspired home skateboard ramp!!
I hope too to catch up with Louise and to meet with her family and her husband George once I arrive in Australia in october.
On the night of the shoot we were being filmed for a documentary by film maker Donald Taylor Black.
With a working title of 'Stuffing The Tiger' Donald is mapping a picture of the crash by making observations on several artists reactions/work  across several disciplines.
During the course of his filming he has focused on four photographic projects and I pride myself on being in the good company of Mark Curran,Anthony Haughey,Sean Hillen.
Donald and his crew Paddy and Carl joined my self and Carole for dinner after an interview and before the shoot.It was a very enjoyable meal for all and the night continued in a happy tone right up to Louise's house were we found herself and Ewan and Ella ready and in great form,expectant for a bright future in Australia.
Ray and my own brother Ian looked after lighting on the night and Ian actually made a good connection with Donald  and hopefully some of his original music will be used in Donalds upcoming documentary.
So after a fantastic show in Dublin this July and with more to come in Australia in october and around Ireland next year now is no time to be resting on the laurels so On we go. Full Steam Ahead!!

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LEAVING DUBLIN LAUNCHES TO A WALLSPACE IN A GRAND STYLE

wrapped

1/20 scale editing

CATCH -UP TIME!

 The last couple of weeks have been very busy so I suppose I should take a few minutes to talk you through all thats been going on and what's to come!
First off I have been preparing for the launch of the third PhotoIreland festival it kicks off on July 1st
and set to be the best yet with a fantastic program as always covering the Gamut of photographic styles allowing for an open and honest discourse around this years theme, Migrations, the Diaspora and Cultural Identity. As with last year there will be a book and magazine fair at Moxie studios and several programmed shows hosted within the theme.

GETTING OVER THE LINE!

Well time is moving on and the leaving Dublin project is well into the second year of its shooting(its been active for 27 months now)
Things are not getting any better on the streets in fact they get worse.
We are indeed feeling the pain of four austerity budgets in a row as money is sucked out of circulation and commercial activity continues on its downward spiral.The publicity maelstrom whipped up for the upcoming referendum is a mere diversion from the fact that whatever the outcome we are destined to continue down this road until this government falls out of favour with the electorate.As before the flaws in our system will leave us waiting whilst another set of deluded ministers bury their heads in the sand regarding our stressed population and only have eyes for keeping the show on the road.No time for negativity,just lets hear the good news,the rewards of their hard labour.
In fact there is no good news that will negate the hardships that are being felt on the streets right now, therein lies the flaw in the current political thinking.
But you know people are making the best of their lives still despite the weary weight that we are all squarely bearing.
For some this means relocating,emigrating,leaving home family and friends, in order to persue their chosen career.
One such  person is Gemma Geraghty.
Gemma an Artist, graduated last summer from Art school,A hard worker she worked in retail whilst interning in Dublin and London(six months) to gain experience.
through most of 2011 Gemma worked on the Leaving Dublin Project and was a great help on many a shoot in and around town(all Gemma shoots here).Now thanks to her hard work and dedication she has secured a full time position working on a technical team in a large London Gallery.
I congratulate her warmly and,just like her family,friends and boyfriend Paddy, I will miss her dearly,again saddened by the depressed state of the cultural section(be that only financial) in Ireland at the moment.
So like so many others  in order to get her career project over the line Gemma has had to take the boat.
She is following in a long line of cultural export and I hope she is soon to return,but I doubt it will be any time soon.
Ray hegarty and Artur Sikora headed up the lighting team on this shoot,a perfect job as always!


Back in Dublin I am trying to get a little project of mine over the line as we move a little closer to a milestone ,a print exhibition.
The cost of  mounting a substantial piece worthy of my sitters is high and response has been great to my funding campaign of fundit.ie.
There is only 2 days left on the campaign and it is close to reaching its goal.
The important thing to note is that if it fails to reach its target no funds will change hands.
So please help me to raise the last€900 euro or so by pledging to the campaign(if you have not done already) now and help get this one over the line.
there is a short video here to explain the virtues of a €150 pledge so if you can scrape it together the reward well outweighs its monetary value.https://vimeo.com/42268203
Big thanks to all who have already moved to help out its really appreciated!!
david
please Share and comment as always!

WALKING THE WALL!!

Things have been very busy in my small world of late with preparations for an upcoming show in the Photographic Archives Gallery.The show featuring my Leaving Dublin Project and the fascinating story of the Argentine Irish Diaspora,as told by Maurice Gunning, is a stroke of curatorial genius bringing together  two strands of a story and enriching the narrative by adding the layers of time and distance to the discussion.
The comings the goings,the leaving,the living!
It should form a central part of discussions around the theme of the PhotoIreland festival of which it is a part,that of migrations,the diaspora,and cultural identity.

A LUCKY BREAK!!

Audraí  O'Dwyer was in a great mood the night we met on Dublin's Grafton street,she was visibly excited about what lay ahead and was looking forward to her trip to Sydney Australia. she was due start a new job as communications Manager for the Urological society of Australia and New Zealand,on arrival

ITS ALL REAL!

I met Paul Horace in a queue to enter R.T.É. studios It was december and I was in A bit of a panic as to whether I could reach the 70 mark in time for production of my video piece(airs tomorrow,in most locations).

As it turned out there was no need to worry at all and we trotted over the line a couple of weeks ago with a little time to spare to learn all about the wonders of final cut x a serious mans video editing program.Paul was the only sitter I got from that audience with the country,it wasn't the best of shows 

but it did lead to this great shot.

OFF WE GO AGAIN!

I have to say the experience of shooting the leaving Dublin project has been for me a huge process.

On one hand you have the technical,the logistical,the weather,the locations,The Timing,the edits,the posts.

On the other hand you have the emotions,the people,the kinship,understanding,camaraderie,the empathy.

BLESSED BY THE MOON

Some weeks ago myself,Ray Hegarty,and Ian Monahan met with Elaine Bannon,A youth worker on her way to Australia.
on Elaines request we had made a plan to shoot at Kilmainham Gaol ,scene of many a killing and hotbed of English suppression of Irish rebels during the heady days of the Irish colony.
On arrival at the proposed site we found that an illegally parked car had scuppered our original plan to make a shot featuring the large wooden door at the end of the prison building(just like several other great Irish plans, fate fiddled it all up,we all should pay more attention to the laws of probability!).
But as good forward planning always counts for something,We had a contingency plan,to shoot a long shot along the long wall, that went all the way to Kilmainham courthouse.
Well,on we went,we welcomed Elaine onto the pitch and set about getting set up! She chatted with Ian and Ray about all that was going through her head and how as her departure date got closer ,she was feeling the sense of fear rising in her,fear of the unknown,fear of what the future held for her,fear for what her life had to become in the future.But all in a good way!

ON THE SUBJECT OF THE LIFESTYLE CHOICE!

Well its been a while. But here I go!
The last government of Ireland had numbed me, so much so that I became immune to their rantings, their obvious detachment, the silly unfounded statements and ridicuolus actions.
So when the new crew came along in a way I felt sorry for them and the mess they had taken on.
But the beast in me has been reawakened by our now minister for finance Michael Noonan and his leader Enda Kenny.
I suppose you could say I have had an epiphany on the road to the Malahide estuary to photograph another of our kind.  A hard working, loving, vibrant, reality, being forced to turn away and seek  feelings of worth in a mine in Perth Australia.
Oh now I realise what an empty system Irish democracy has evolved into.

GRADUATE GHOSTOWN

Meet Naoise Mc Gee, a recent college graduate in Film and Russian. Naoise is on her way to the busiest city in the world so it's a good job that she worked at Mao Restaurant where things are always full of hustle and bustle. Naoise lived until now on Killiney Hill and the view from her window included the Pigeon House Station. Like Marie Carroll, she decided that close to these tubes would be a good landmark for her to sit  for her glorious parting shot. Pensive is the word she actually used as she glanced at my mac screen after the shoot. She had to say that she loves Dublin, but with so many of her friends gone it seems like a ghost town (70,000 left in the last 12 months alone).