From: "Saved by Windows Internet Explorer 7" Subject: PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID CREEDON | RETORT MAGAZINE Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2007 08:09:24 -0000 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; type="text/html"; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_01C82371.01D93D70" X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.0.6000.16545 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C82371.01D93D70 Content-Type: text/html; charset="utf-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://brentley.com/retort/live/2007/10/28/photography-by-david-creedon/ =EF=BB=BF
GHOSTS OF THE FAITHFUL =
DEPARTED
FOR LARGER VERSIONS OF THESE PHOTOGRAPHS SEE THE FEATURE = AT RETORT-TV =
Ghosts of the = Faithful=20 Departed.
It has been estimated that =
between 1949 and=20
1989 over 800,000 people were forced to leave Ireland. Something in the =
order of=20
half of this outflow occurred during the 1950s. The peak was reached in =
1955=20
when 55,000 young people left our shores. In a census taken in 1956 the=20
population of the country fell to 2.8 million the lowest ever recorded =
and led=20
one author to question =E2=80=9CAre we becoming the Vanishing Irish and =
would we survive=20
as a race if something wasn=E2=80=99t done to stem the outflow=E2=80=9D? =
Those who stayed had to suffer =
continued=20
hardships, isolation & social exclusion. The rural communities were=20
decimated by the impact of emigration. Many of those who stayed in this =
decade=20
did so in silence as they watched family members and friend=E2=80=99s =
leave. Now in a=20
new millennium these people have passed on and their homes stand as a =
monument=20
to a bygone age.
While visiting these unoccupied =
houses I felt=20
like an intruder disturbing the spirits that still haunt every room. In =
some=20
homes it looked as if the last activity was the waking of the dead, the =
closing=20
of the door and the abandonment of the house. Non-existent or faraway =
relatives=20
simply left the house to the ravages of time. It was possible to date =
the last=20
occupancy through observation of a calendar for=20
example.
While looking at the scenes about =
me I felt I=20
was awakening ghosts from my childhood past and there were times that =
the hair=20
literally stood on the back of my neck. Spurred by dusty damp newspaper =
articles=20
or mouldy-framed images memories came flooding =
back.
Wallpaper took me back to a holiday home my parents owned =
forty years=20
ago. An old valve radio reminded me of the thrill of selecting on the=20
illuminated dial distant cities like =E2=80=93 London, Luxembourg, =
Prague. I can still=20
hear Radio=20
Eireann =
playing =E2=80=9CIf you=20
feel like singing, do sing an Irish song=E2=80=9D. Isolated inhabitants =
were very=20
dependent on the radio for news of what was happening at home and=20
abroad.
I decided=20 at an early stage to shoot in colour = as=20 against black and white because this allowed me to capture the unique = rich=20 colours = within the houses=20 which were in contrast to the poverty of the times. I have strived at = all times=20 not to move or arrange items but to photograph as = found.
David=20
Creedon
Ireland Photography
David Creedon was born in Cork Ireland in the = late=20 fifties. Having an interest in photography he began to photograph local = and=20 touring bands. He loved the way in which theatrical lighting was used to = isolate=20 and give prominence to an artist on stage.
His work is very varied but he tends to work = more on=20 themed portfolios.
Amongst the projects he has worked on are: = Easter Parade,=20 IL Carneval di Venezia, World Cup 2002, Automobiles, and = Flowers.
His portraits of Irish musicians are very = striking and=20 have an almost a film noir feel about them. His images have appeared on = various=20 cd covers and his work will shortly feature on a book cover for Nobel = Literature=20 prizewinner Gabriel Jos=C3=A9 Garc=C3=ADa M=C3=A1rquez.
His work is regularly published and has been = featured in a=20 range of prestigious European photographic magazines including Fota 8,=20 Eyemazing, AG Photographic Journal, Amateur Photographer, Creative Lens, = Zone=20 Zero, and Platforms Magazine
Dr. Kieran Keohane, Senior Lecturer in Sociology = at the=20 National University of Ireland, Cork has said that Creedon=E2=80=99s = work is one of the=20 most significant
collections of photography in contemporary = Ireland and=20 will be amongst the most important works of Irish art in years to=20 come.
His work has received the runner up award from = PX3 Prix de=20 la Photographie Paris for features and he holds distinctions of = Associateship=20 from both the Royal Photographic Society and the British Professional=20 Photographers Association. His photographs are held in public & = private=20 collections in America and Europe and he has exhibited in Ireland and = the United=20 States.
You must be logge= d=20 in to post a comment.
October=20 29th, 2007 at 9:23 am
Beautiful, evocative!!