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Ghosts of the Faithful Departed

By David Creedon
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Description

Emigration has been a constant in Ireland since the Famine. Those left behind by family and friends suffered hardship and isolation and passed away, their homes monuments to a bygone age. Visiting these unoccupied houses David Creedon felt like an intruder disturbing the spirits that haunt every room. In some it seemed the last activity was waking the dead, closing the door and leaving the house to the ravages of time. Sometimes the last occupancy could be dated by a newspaper or calendar. Looking at such scenes awoke ghosts from David's past. Memories flooded back, prompted by dusty newspapers or mouldy-framed images. Wallpaper evoked his parents' holiday home, a valve radio the thrill of tuning into Luxembourg or Prague. Forsaken and forgotten, the houses acquire new life in these hauntingly evocative photographs, the rich colours within the houses in contrast with the poverty of the last occupants.

Bibliographic Data

  • Book Format: Hardback
  • Published: 2011
  • Dimensions: 290 x 249 mm
  • Number of pages: 168
  • ISBN: 9781848891258
  • Illustrations note: Colour photos,

Editorial Reviews

"The photographs have a painterly quality that echoes the detail and tone of a 17th-century Dutch painting….The photographs have both the patina of the past as well as the familiarity of a recognisable domesticity…Creedon records these traces of occupancy and emigration with empathy and humour, and the result is a thoughtful and relevant reflection on the passing of time."

– The Irish Arts Review

"Strikingly documents the isolation of rural Ireland through a series of emotionally powerful images whose beauty often lies in their desolation…The book is interesting on many levels, as not only does it contain a host of wonderfully potent colour images, but each image is also accompanied by a descriptions and thoughts from the photographer about each discovery. "

– The Irish World

"Stunning"

– Evening Echo

"The full-page colour photographs are poignant and haunting; the photographer’s short captions simple and unobtrusive…A fine book and a moving contribution to Irish social history and the art of photography."

– Books Ireland

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