Monday, June 22, 2009
ONE of the most encouraging things about modern landscape photography in Ireland is, perhaps, its integrity.
Out are thatched cottages, emerald green fields, cloudless blue skies and pictures of an idyllic Ireland where the sun always shines – phoney picture postcard images so beloved of sentimental Irish-Americans. In are shots of mountain, sea and rugged terrain as they really look in sunshine, snow, or rain. Not a thatched dwelling in sight; only occasional ruins of stone-built houses and other human creations that appear to be just part of the natural landscape.
And, when the photographers are being really honest, they don’t shy away from including modern bungalows and barbed wire fencing in their frames – even when such features look ugly against an otherwise pristine background. They do a service to the nation in that regard, highlighting bad planning among other things. To hand is a new book by a German-born landscape photographer who, clearly, genuinely loves the natural Ireland, something that shines through his magnificent pictures.
Carsten Krieger first came here, in 1989, was hooked and now lives in west Clare. He recalls how, 20 years ago, he found himself in Caherciveen, Co Kerry, on a cold spring afternoon on which a drizzle was, typically, falling and the smell of turf fires filled the air. The day before, he had seen the Atlantic and the MacGillycuddy Reeks, which were snow-capped, for the first time. In the following years, he returned many times always being drawn, almost magnetically, to the west of Ireland which he considers to be "one of the last unspoiled and most beautiful parts of Europe".
His book, The West of Ireland: A Photographer’s Journey, features a collection of pictures ranging all the way from the Beara Peninsula to counties Leitrim and Sligo. Beaches, fields, cliffs, mountains ancient forests and boglands were all fertile ground for an imaginative and patient photographer.
Unpredictable Irish weather can be a daily hazard for landscape photographers who depend on being in the right place at the right time to capture the moment, light and shade they are looking for. Keeping an eye on the weather forecast is, for them, a routine activity. Most of the time, according to Krieger, the elements turns out to be wrong for what they are seeking. "There were days when I did not even get the camera out of the bag and, having driven for several hours to a location, this can very frustrating," he says.
"On the other hand, there are those rare occasions when everything falls into place and the weather, landscape and inspiration all interact in perfect harmony." One of those memorable moments for Krieger happened around the Inagh Valley, in Connemara, in the middle of winter. Following an extremely wet and windy evening, he set out very early in the morning with low expectations. During the night, however, it started to snow and he saw a "winter wonderland" appear out of the darkness as he was heading towards the valley. "I could not believe my luck when the Twelve Bens started to glow red under the first rays of the rising sun while the shore of Lough Inagh was still covered in snow. I was spellbound for the rest of the morning." A rare shot of Lough Inagh and Twelve Bens topped with an orange bonnet graces the book along many other pictures taken along the west coast.
The West of Ireland: A Photographer’s Journey by Carsten Krieger, is published by The Collins Press (€27.95).
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