Photography exhibition offers chance to see city as it was

TIME doesn’t stand still and Waterford city’s evolution as a thriving business hub is about to be mapped through an exhibition of works from one of Waterford’s best-known photographers.

Annie Brophy was synonymous with photography, particularly portraits, and very few households in the city do not have at least one Brophy image.

However she also photographed buildings and it is these works which will soon be on show.

Earlier this year Waterford City Council bought her collection of over 60,000 photographic negatives for deposit in the City Archives. The finishing touches are now being put to the first exhibition from the collection, held in conjunction with Heritage Week, Archive Awareness Month and the Waterford Fringe Festival. It will focus on her photographs of buildings of Waterford from the 1920s to 1970.

The exhibition will be presented in two formats. The formal exhibition in the City Library, Lady Lane, will see each image accompanied by a caption and a small digital image of the building as it looks today.

Secondly, with the co-operation of the present occupiers of each of the buildings, there will be a “Photo Trail” around the city with prints of the buildings as they were in the windows of the modern buildings. The Trail will stretch from 33 The Mall as far as the Railway Station.

Each building will be clearly marked on a map of the city. Many of the buildings featured are on the Quay or in the Barronstrand Street/Broad Street area. The “Photo Trail” will allow Waterford natives and visitors to the city to see the featured photographs in the context of the street on which the building stood..

While many of the buildings will be recognisable to those who know the city’s streets, there will be quite a few surprises, according to city archivist, Donal Moore. Very few of the shopfronts and buildings featured have remained completely intact and even fewer of the buildings are still occupied by the businesses or organisations that were there 70, 60 or 50 years ago. A small number of the buildings are no longer in existence but there are also some examples of beautifully restored buildings.

“This is a great opportunity for people to see parts of Waterford city the way it was. Many of the featured buildings housed well-known retail outlets or businesses. The standard of the negatives was very high and they are a testimony to Annie Brophy’s methodical and professional approach to photography.

“Very few of the images had to be cleaned up or manipulated in any way.

“Some of the buildings caused recognition problems, but I am confident that we got them all identified in the end.”

lThe exhibition will run from September 7 until October 1 in the Central Library, Lady Lane. Library opening hours are Monday 10.00-17.00; Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday, 10.00-17.30; Wednesday & Friday, 10.00-20.00.