DOWN BY THE FURRY GLEN

The Pheonix Park in Dublin is a pretty big place and no doubt about that.
Having said that I managed to find a place which meant something to our latest sitter Neasa O'Shea Brady
A place where she and her family have often walked and played in the many years they have been living near the park.
The Furry Glen is a little ecosystem within the park a small treelined valley with a pond and all the associated flora and fauna that goes with it. It is indeed a beautiful place and we found ourselves on the edge of it amongst trees Which according to an inscribed memorial stone were planted in 1878. Beeches and scotts pine formed our backround all which have become heavily inscribed over the years be lovers of life and grifitti.I wondered had Neasa an artist about to take flight for New York, ever made her mark .But, I was afraid to ask.Anyhow when that crossed my mind I had I had other things on my mind.

It was pitch dark and very difficult to set up the shot using only a couple of flashlights.But thanks to Artur,hugh and Mel O' Reilly(a new member of our troupe), and a lot of moving around by Neasa we got there eventually.
Neasa and four other friends are off to New york and mostly for the same reasons there is no work for them here in their chosen fields.I have photographed two of the group already Aoife O Donnell and Fiona O Keefe and all of them are off to New york and hope to get internships in the Arts.
They are a very motivated group and I wish them the best and I hope they get all they deserve in their new home,New York.
Things come and things go that's for sure, our country is in a state of disarray It looks like the two Brians, Batty,and the whole bunch of Mary's might be moving sooner than they think.
But one thing is sure that when the dust settles on this troubled era the Furry Glen will be as beautiful a place as it has always been,and the joy of the stroll through the woods is something I hope Neasa and her friends will see again,soon.


This is the last post from my current shooting list current and so I am appealling for new leavers once more
if you know of anybody about to emigrate from Dublin please send them this way.
there is a little video piece on youtube that will get the message across also my viewbook page
has all of the work without the text.
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SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF!!

Irish identity as seen from a different perspctive is an interesting thing.
I wait with baited breath to see how C.B.S.portray the people I have shot and how that all relates to America and how it sees us in their world.
Two months ago my brother Ken sent me an email link to a very interesting B.B.C. article which he said related to my project!
Now it really does!
Let me explain the article was about the new wave of irish immigration into the U.K. and it was a very good, deep and reasonably historically accurate. It points out the differences of previous Irish waves and draws the conclusion that this wave will be the most rewarded(because of a change in sentiment towards the Irish).It talked to a couple of new Immigrants.
one of these was a person called Claire Weir.
Claire has been around the world since leaving Dublin last year,she spent some time in Australia where she saw my project and corresponded with me via email. Thinking she was still there you can imagine my surprise to see her name in the B.B.C. article.Later that month she mailed me to say she was home for christmas and she would like to be part of my project.See the interesting article here
She chose her old neighborhood of Portabello for the shot and we where both drawn to the clean and heavily loaded graphic by her old local pub.
I have followed Claires progress over the last year I can say she is a hard working Irish photographer looking to do what she does best and the opportunity to do this in ireland is not forthcoming.
So it was with great pleasure that Claire and I closed the circle last week when we at last met to take this glorious parting shot as she prepared return to London to take up a job doing stills for a t.v. production.
It is an interesting point of B.B.C. article that the Irish in this new wave carry themselves well ,and Claire is indeed one of these.
Artur Sikora and Hugh Mc Cabe dodged the traffic to light up the neighborhood and we got it all finished before the rain came down.
Remember to read the the article over at the B.BC.page,It makes me feel good to be documenting history as its being written, and to leave my mark in the records,no shame ,no regret!!!

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David

SCENE FROM THE COAST

Christmas in Dublin this year was great!!and horray it was a white one!!
probably the only white christmas I have ever seen(at least as I remember)
After the november snows when everything really ground to a halt the Christmas fall was perfectly timed for those living in Dublin.(added several shots to my tree portraits at this time due to magical winter light after snow)
the Snow actually gave us the means to slow down to the holiday.
Afterwards it all melted away beautifully by the 27 and that left the roads clear (and the temperature amiable) to make another glorious parting shot.
This time our Hero was Brendan Rowan.
A recent Science graduate of Trinity College Dublin Brendan moved to Cardiff in Wales to do a P.H.D.in his chosen field.
here is what he had to say" I wasnt forced to leave Ireland ,but the funding for P.H.D.'S isn't there any more meaning there is larger compettion for places.

In the U.K. we are more highly valued and find it easier to get studentships.

As well, it's a chance to live in a new country and get away from the vortex of gloom that is currently overtaking Ireland.
The shot happened on december 28th at about 10 at night at Seapoint just down the road from Monkstown
The temperature had risen to 4 degrees making it a very comfortable shoot after the three previous sub zero sessions.
Artur Sikora accompanied me and looked after all lighting needs for the night.
Big thanks to Brendan,and to Jeannie Wenham for putting him in touch with me.
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David

THE STRANGEST OF SYNERGIES

This post is a tad late. So apologies if you have been waiting around anticipating the third chapter in my three shots in a week post!!
I have to admit that right now I am awe struck at the pattern of events that have conspired to become this moment, when so many forces have pulled together to catapult my mind and my leaving Dublin project of into a higher dimension. Allow me to explain.

Aoife O Donnell is 'leaving Dublin', she is off to New York.A graduate of the D.I.T. photography school on Meeting house square,she shares with me a passion for photography and many happy memories of time spent on this square and in its environs.Aoife said "I am leaving Ireland primarily for personal adventure but also to further my career in photography. I plan to take up a

photography related internship in New York City for a minimum of 14 months with a view to extending my stay or to then travel the world. Having lived in Chicago for a period in 2008 I found considerably more opportunity to train and work in photography than in Ireland. As a recent graduate I now have the opportunity to obtain a working visa for The States so I plan to return there in January 2011.It has been an ambition of mine to live for an extended period in New York since I was 15 and this potentially could be my one and only chance to do so."

She spent 3of the last 4 years here in the D.I.T. building ,In talking with her last night I realised that I had been associated with the Photographic archive ( the building at her back)for the last 12 to 13 years.
It is a sad truth that the three of us (Aoife,the archive,and I),are all leaving our pasts behind us in this Square and Moving on!

The Square was set up as a result of enlightened policy to pull film, art, and photography institutions together in one place and to allow them to synergise for the benefit of all involved in these complementary disciplins.On the square was The ark,the Gallery of Photography,the Irish Film Institute and cinemas,The National Film Archive,The National Photographic Archive,The Gaiety School of Acting,and The D.I.T.photography School.Close by there was a music venue (now called the button factory),Film base,Temple bar Galleries and Studios,And the Project Arts centre.
As far as photography is concerned I think the synergies kicked in last year when recent graduates of the D.I.T school and others,united all the strands of involvement in Photography and set up the Photoireland festival.What a blast that was.It showed how Ireland was now ready to take its place and stand shoulder to shoulder with the rich photographic cultures that exist in Europe, the Americas,and the rest of the world.
Sadly the Photographic Archive for whatever reasons has chosen to retreat to its early nineties position and become once more The photographic collections of the National Library of Ireland.
This Quiet retreat is reflected in the libraries website were all traces of the previous National Photographic Archive have been removed to be replaced by this Introduction to the photographic collections.
I am deeply saddened personally,and see this as a backward step culturally for Ireland in a European and worldwide context.The exhibition space remains open for the moment but soon enough the square could start to fragment with its loss.
However I suppose it is the reduction in work volumes in the last few years that has me chasing personal projects, so for this I suppose I will be eternally grateful.
Back to the images above!The reason we are here.
Aoife as I said earlier is off to New York,and C.B.S.news was interested to make a story around my project.They saw it as a fresh way of showing the return of the age old Irish tradition of emigration,and they were also interested in talking to someone who was moving to the U.S.A.
So up to this point my project was free flowing governed only by its participants with no outside agencies timetabling shoots.
However once we had Arranged to hook up with C.B.S. a date was set for them to interview,Aoife,myself,and to record the goings on at a shoot.
The shoot was set up for friday dec 17th,and low and behold the polar express was being projected on the squares screens that night for an eager christmas audience.
It would have been cutting it to tight to wait till after the square was put back in order after the show so we decided to move the shoot to another part of temple bar(Essex street)
This proved to be crazy busy (as you may see when the video piece is aired later next week),
and as a result I was not totally satisfied with the result.
In consult with Aoife we decided to have a second go,but at the original site chosen by Aoife on meeting house square.
After looking at the final images I realised that the first shot is totally fine,and my dissatisfaction was actually caused by not making the shot at a site so sacred to me,And indeed to Aoife.
We both indeed have lived a lot of our life in this unique square,and now it is a part of my own portrait of a city left behind, and part of Aoife's past.

So many strands coming together at one time have left me a little phased,but on we go propelled by synergy!!
Thank you If you have managed to stay with this post from the start,its a long one!
Please let me know which image works best for you,via the comments box!
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Brian Daly,Artur Sikora,and James Lillis,covered the Essex street shoot.
Whilst Artur Sikora,and Hugh Mc Cabe,handled the rather slow,(due to a crappy mac issue), meeting house square shoot.Big thanks again to them!! And to Dan And Tanya at the Gallery of photography for enabling me to light up!!
david

NEW YORK! THAT SOUNDS GOOD TO ME!

Having finished our shoot at the Guiness plant,myself,Artur,Gemma,and Agnes (CBS Wonderproducer)
All jumped into my car,and we headed to our next assignment.
East wall was our next destination and we were off to meet a friend of Gemmas who was Emigrating to New York.
Fiona O Keefe is a fine art graduate heading to the U.S. She is disillusioned with the lack of jobs available to her in Ireland within her field of study,and she is hoping to work in Gallery administration in New York.
She is a great talker and she chatted with me,Agnes ,and Gemma as we prepared to shoot.
She was talking to Gemma about this project and my heart just soared to hear one positive comment after another.
Had I mentioned in the last post that it was a cold night! aahemm! o.k.
Well the effect of the cold on my laptop had left me without an essential part of the kit.
In fact the battery charge had dropped off from fifty% to zero in minutes leaving me shooting direct to camera with only the nasty little preview on the back to check focus.
I have said here before that the quality of the files from the hasselblad h series camera are tops.
But its Auto focus system leaves a lot to be desired,so I like my full screen preview and a 100% magnification to check focus.This was denied to me and I had to feel my way around this one in a different way!!
East wall has been home to Fiona for some years and She liked the way the the old and the new fell together in this composition. Artur and Gemma were great here as always and we only drew the attention of one passer by who strangely wanted to know had somebody been shot!!
Well in fact somebody had,but in the nicest possible way!!
Big thanks for all the positive comments for the last post please keep them coming,it helps keep the ship straight.
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Thanks to all for sharing this content with there friends,and if you know of any one preparing to fly,please direct them to my work.
thanks again
david

FIVE YEARS ON!!

Wow Its still bitterly cold in Dublin and Iv'e been out working in it a couple of times this week.
The project gets stronger and stronger as more types of people come forward for inclusion.I met Anna Vareil at a class I give at the gallery of photography and when she told me she was leaving Dublin
I showed her my project and she was more than impressed . Quickly we found a location and we got on with it.I was anxious to shoot a lot this week as my project was singled out byCBS news as a story worth covering.From their perspective emigration stories where old news but infused with the magic of beautiful photographic imagery those same stories become little nuggets of light lighting up the night sky of a very very cold,but interesting nation.
They wanted to film me shooting a shot so I arranged three shots over 2 nights just incase anything went amiss.More about this in our next few posts!!
We shot on Rainsfort street dublin(thats the Guiness hop store in the background),Aplace chosen by Anna Vareil
as deeply significant in her stay in Dublin.Anna spent over 5 years in dublin and worked as a credit controller with Deloitte and Touche is returning home to Bordeaux for christmas before moving to Africa to work with medecins sans frontieres
here is what she had to say
"Am I sad to leave Ireland? I would say yes, I will miss the irish people, their laugh, sense of humor and the way they know how to enjoy life. They have something authentic and true, the nicest people I have ever met!
I think that once you have been in Ireland for several years, ireland gets into u and I know that I feel now a bit Irish. I will always carry a bit of Ireland with me wherever I go! I have fantastic memories here in Dublin, I have met great personalities, and I will definitely miss my friends and the evenings at the pub!!! .

for this shot Artur Sikora and Gemma Geraghty looked after lighting quite fantastically

and Agnes Reau caught it all on video for CBS

thankyou for all the positive feedback to date.

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david

THIS CITY REALLY SUITED ME

Its been a very strange week or two.Ice and snow covered dublin and our great dictator continued dictating as if his tenure was assured no matter who he alienated.

On Tuesday we had a budget and I was delighted to be busy for the day.

The other Brian was on his feet at 3.45, I was finishing preparations for a class I was to give at 6 o clock.

All went well and afterward I drove direct to grand canal dock ,waited in the cold and was joined first by Artur,then Brian Daly.Gemma then arrived with Martina a friend and the subject of the nights shoot.

When Hugh Arrived we set off across the canal and got on with our business of the day.

Celebrating the greatness of another leaving this city.

I Missed it all,Lost in the glory of photography for hours!!

Here is what Martina had to say

"I'm returning back home, to the north-east of Italy, and I've lived in Dublin for the last 6 months. I worked in an art gallery and I fell in love with Dublin again.

I first came here in 1999 for a holiday and I always wanted to return and live here for a while. After such a long time (more than 10 years) I made it happened and it's been the realisation of a dream.
I could say that my favourite thing here are the people.
Irish people are unbelievably warm when you have the opportunity to know them.
I had a great time here and I feel grown as a person and ready for new experiences like this one. Believe me or not, I'm really going to miss this city and the last 6 months spent trying to be a dubliner...this city really suited me."

The one thing that sustains me through this very difficult fabrication in which we now live is the work that I do for my love of people and their spirit.The vast majority of people here in ireland are trapped in a shrinking world whilst those who choose to leave slip into a bigger space filled with hope and expectation for a good life ahead.

I wish them all success and thank them all for pausing a while with me,someone who wishes to celebrate their brilliance as they move on to greater things.

Now lets commit this entire cabinet to history.

Comments appreciated!!

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thanks to all

David