Kevin O’Farrell: 'The boatyard became a natural place for me to photograph'

An exhibition by the West Cork-based photographer focuses on Hegarty's Boatyard in Skibbereen 

Kevin O'Farrell and two of his photographs of Hegarty's Boatyard in Skibbereen currently on display at Uillinn.

It was almost inevitable that Kevin O’Farrell would fall under the spell of Hegarty’s Boatyard in Skibbereen, Co Cork, the last business in the country dedicated to building large-scale wooden boats. A photographer by trade, he also works as a furniture restorer and has a keen interest in watersports.

“I was always into kayaking and canoeing and activities like that,” he says. “When I moved to West Cork, I got into sailing. I bought an old wooden boat, and brought it to Hegarty’s to be restored. And then, as I got to know Liam and John Hegarty, the boatyard became a natural place for me to photograph.”