Kinsale photographer Giles Norman: 'I went off and learned the hard way'

Best known for his beautiful landscapes, Giles Norman is also showcasing some of his other work at an exhibition at Kinsale Arts Festival 

Giles Norman outside his Kinsale gallery. 

The theme of this year’s Kinsale Arts Weekend is the selkie, the mermaid figure from Irish folklore. The marine inspiration is a resonant one for Giles Norman, one of Ireland’s leading landscape photographers, whose work will be showcased in The Shape of Water exhibition taking place as part of the arts festival.

Norman’s gallery has been a mainstay in the harbour town for 35 years — his own photographic journey began at sea more than four decades ago when he was a fifth-year student at the vocational school in Kinsale.