An exploration of the work of Paul Seawright and his representation of Ireland
Within this essay I will be exploring the work of Irish documentary photographer Paul Seawright. I shall examine how his work is influenced from his upbringing in conflict torn Northern Ireland. I will look into the relationship between the struggle Ireland has with its identity, as a country, and how his work may vary from other Irish documentary photographers. I shall then go onto discuss the identity of Paul Seawright as a photographer; How his work’s themes and techniques reflect his feelings towards Ireland. I will include references to his work in Belfast on ‘Gates’ as well as his renowned ‘Secterian Murders,’ ‘Orange order’ and ‘Police Force.’
Paul Seawright, the Irish documentary photographer, was born in Protestant West Belfast in 1965. Seawright grew up surrounded by the brutal conflict and segregation between Protestants and Catholics. In an area circumscribed by sectarian hostility, he lived the subject that was to become muse and the basis of his more memorable collections. It is his own experiences that inform his work and allow the audience an insight into the cultural grounding of his community. Ruth Charity of the Photographer’s Gallery, London states (Charity.R, 1995, Inside Information) “His is an insider’s view, both in terms of his background and approach…” “…his work is informed by his own experience.”
To understand his work as an entirety, we have to recognize the situation from which the context is formed. His documentary style structure turns into far more, when looking past the obvious vague critiques. His work avoids being easily categorized into a straight forward colour documentation encoded with political agendas and ironies. Val Williams states (Williams.V, 1995, Inside Information) ‘[his work] appears to be a somber, forbidding documentation of a quasi police-state, for extremism and violence, but its meaning is contained in a far more beguiling and multi-faceted and personal schema. To understand this, we must examine closely a biography and a background, establish a context and explore a narrative which transforms documentary into a testimony, and where the witness is truly partial.’ His work is highly fueled by his upbringing, however not only does it affect his subject but also his style and approach to the work. He tells us a story about Ireland in a subtle way. To understand Seawrights work, we need to understand his history and the feelings tied to his homeland.
Ireland is such a Country of beauty and tradition and yet at the same time such a place of torment and destruction; and it is the later which Seawright consciously chooses to photograph. Unlike the work of southern Irish photographers Anthony Hughey, Padraig Murphy and Mick O’Kelly, whose work seems highly influenced by the other social conflicts such as the issues of emigration, Seawright chooses to focus on what he has grown and dealt with personally. The fact that Seawright has chosen Belfast as the setting for a selection of his Irish collections just proves the impact the relationship with his hometown has on his work. However Belfast itself is more then just a place where he grew up, it also has a huge link to the political and cultural goings on of the Country. Poet Derek Mahon has said ( O’Toole, 1995, Lie of the land)“The suburbs of Belfast have a peculiar relationship to the Irish Cultural situation in as much as they’re the final anathema for the traditional Irish imagination.” On the other hand, it is not just his Belfast images that are powerful. Seawright’s work carries the same strength even when it is not based in his hometown and in turn Ireland. His identity and experiences have also influenced his work on Afghanistan in ‘Hidden’ and Africa in ‘Invisible Cities.’
Ireland as a whole has struggled to find its identity since the conflicts begun and it’s obvious through Seawright’s work that identity is one of the occurring themes in his photographs. It may be, it is the culture rather then the specific location that has influenced his work. Mike O’Kelly (O’Kelly, 1995, Lie of the Land) said that “National identities envoke a sense of belonging to a particular locale or culture, very often this exceeds any geographical place of region.” It is clear that he is confident in his own work and has created an identity for himself that has been shaped by his past. Within the conflict of his home, the basis of his work has blossomed. And as Fintan O’Toole states about Irelands struggle to find itself (O’Toole, 1995, Lie of the land) “ In a sense the map of Ireland is a lie. The lie of the land is that there is a place called ‘Ireland’ inhabited by the Irish people, a place with a history, a culture, a society. The partition of the island into two apparently well-defined political spaces deepens that lie by pretending that there is a border that separated one fixed entity from another, when in fact both political spaces are unstable and contradictory and porous…”
”…It may be the slow admission of these facts that accounts in large part for the flowering Irish photography in the last decade.” This suggests, that Seawright’s work even plays with the idea of his Country being split in its identity; the idea is easily agreeable as this conflict is apart of his work, but not in a stereotypical way. This even can create a new identity for Ireland. Martin McCabe states (McCabe, 1999, Revealing views…) “Maybe what characterizes the work is a subtle displacement of the familiar certainties, an unthreading of the ‘same old stories,’ a focus on the ordinary in the extraordinary situation and a refusal to offer the pat answer. In doing these things, they are bringing a new perspective to the situation. We can also discern an engagement with what might be called ‘the politics of location’ there is the understanding and acknowledgement that time (history) and place (geography) are powerful vectors in the construction of identity, community and experience.”
There is a renowned relationship between photography and identity as an influence. Liz Wells states that (Wells.L, 1999, Photography Reader) “concepts are material in the sense that they are related to objects or experiences;but they are intrinsically ideological in that systems of ideas are brought into play in order to place and comprehend the significance of material experience. Language performs a mediating role; it does not simply reference objects, events, experiences; rather language operated as a link between experience and what it means to us.” What she is saying is: while the images form a sense of identity of the photographer, it is the representation in the images that allow the audience to connect and create a sense of meaning for them as a reader. The audience are easily allowed to place themselves within the images Seawright creates. Rather then being obvious, Seawright shows glimpses and hints at different situations. He almost gives the audience more by removing from the photographs and allowing the audience to make their own assumptions and views on what is happening. It allows the audience to be active in there reading and interpretation of his work. Fintan O’Toole states that (O’Toole.F, 1995, Lie of the Land) “Each [photographer mentioned] tried to make the spaces we inhabit again rich and stimulating, by drawing attention both to the strangeness of the visible and the immense power of the unseen. By paying attention to the reality of public spaces, each draws our attention to the possibility of moving though them in a way that is not narcotic but wide awake.” By creating a world within his images that becomes both insightful, but also allowing us to notice the ‘unseen,’ it allows the audience to enter into the viewing practice, ‘wide awake,’ by giving them the chance to make different interpretation.
By this approach, Seawright avoids being stereotypical with his views of Ireland; Both of Ireland as a whole, but in addition its conflict. He shows us new aspects of the Irish culture and offers new perspectives. He uses representation and suggestion, and often metaphors. Ruth Charity states (Charity.R, 1995, Lie of the land) “…Paul Seawright has been producing thoughtful and disquieting images which look beyond these stereotypical and often superficial views, offering new perspective from which to view the politics and photojournalist, his approach is exploratory rather than documentary. He does not set out to record facts of offer the narrative description of news reportage but uses the camera as an investigative tool to isolate and draw attention to detail, revealing subtlety and nuance, and drawing out meaning though symbol and metaphor.” A prime example of Seawright’s use of symbolism and representation in his photographs is his collection of Cages in the late 1990’s, for example ‘Gate, Belfast 1997.’ (Fig.1) Seawright created a collection of images based around gates and cages, around bar entrances in Belfast. These cages were constructed so that people could be seen on cameras before entering a building, as a form of protection against the violence that was fierce in the area. The use of gates and barriers in his photographs is an expression of the visible brutalisation of the Irish culture and society in communities in Northern Ireland. The Image of ‘Gate, Belfast 1997’ is an image of a rusted and decaying gate. The shape of the gate has a stark resemblance to the Union Jack flag, which in turn brings back to the idea of metaphors in Seawright’s work. The Union Jack Flag is a symbol of the turmoil in Ireland between the South and North and yet the idea that the gate, a symbol of security is reflected from this idea of the North/South divide, suggests that being part of Great Britain is security. And while the gate itself suggests security, it also represents the decaying of social and political hostility through the rust and decomposition of the location itself. Declan McGonagle states about his Gate collection (McGonangle, 2000, Campo de Agramante)“They are quite specific yet I believe are successful artworks because they are conscious of their own pictorial grammar and syntax and because they also refer to any extreme urban environment where the cement of civic society has been eroded by economic or social if not direct social or political alienation and disempowerment.” These images, because they are so isolated and cut off from any form of locational suggestion, could be any street in any number of cities across the world, and stands for more then a representation of the conflict in Ireland, but conflict all over the world.
Paul Seawright’s other work based in Ireland all seems to reflect the same ideas and themes but in different contexts and ways. His earlier work, ‘Secterian Murders’ is a series of photographs in which a deliberate clash is created between the ordinary scene depicted in the images and the meaning behind them that comes from the addition of text. These picturesque images of seemingly ordinary locations depicted in Seawright’s typical styling of unusual cropping, to show only a section of the whole image, and the addition of the text to which the audience is exposed to the true meaning of the images and the history of the location. Each image shows a location of a murder as a result of Ireland’s tormented history. Val Williams states (Williams.V, 1995, Inside Information) “His series Sectarian Murder (1988) pictured the places where people have been killed as a result of Northern Ireland’s divided society and sets up a stystem of ironies and opposites- a dog trots placidly through the undergrowth where a man was once murdered, flowers bloom on the site of death and maimed bodies are found in ordinary places- a piece of waste ground, a quiet beach. Seen in aesthetic terms, the photographs can be seen to perfectly express the post-modernistic search for the absurd, the real set against the described, and the methodology at odds with the subject matter.” In its own way Seawright’s work on ‘Secterian Murders’ makes a statement about the forgotten dead and how easily it is to forget the horror of what happened in exchange for the idyllic life of living through ‘Rose tinted glasses,’ which is especially prominent when a lot of Irish life is the culture and the pride its citizens in their country.
For example, ‘Friday 25th May 1973’ (Fig.2) mentioned in the above quotation refers to the image of a dog walking in an open park. The background of the image is a quiet empty park filled with trees and open grassland. The Foreground is that of a dog clearly being walked by its owner. The use of fill in flash by Seawright creates a slightly odd look to the dog and creates an unusual mix of highlights and shadows amongst the grass; however other then that it looks like a rather simple yet aesthetically pleasing image. Declan McGonagle states (McGonagle,2000, Campo de Agramante) “In the work Friday 25th May 1973 A further layer is added by the dog in the foreground of the image which looks like an Irish red setter- a breed of dog referred to in Irish mythology, photographed here in the context of an historical location of pagan rites where contemporary sectarian murders were also carried out. Seawright punctures the screen of chronological time in this image and telescopes past and present.” It is only with the addition of the text ‘the murdered mans body was found lying at the giants ring beauty spot, once used for pagan rituals. It has now become a regular location for sectarian murders’ Which accompanies the image does the audience come to the realisation that the image has a hidden agenda and meaning. The majority of the images in this collection follows the same pattern of themes and styles; Uniquely framed images, often with fill in flash accompanied by text describing the horrors that went on in that location. Other examples of the locations used in his ‘sectarian murders’ include playgrounds, beaches (Fig.3), shops (Fig.4) and local landmarks.
After his work on ‘Sectarian murders’, Paul Seawright took on the task of photographing the orange order in his project with the equivalent title. Here we see in a more apparent way, his use of fragmenting photographs and reality. The images are hints and selections of the documentation of the order and its rituals. This tight framing allows the audience to be brought into a scene which can appear very claustrophobic. The images in ‘Orange Order’ focus highly on the culture and identity created by this build up of images. Declan McGonagle voiced (McGonagle.D, 2000, Campo de Agramante) “[This is also true of] of the series, Orange Order where telling fragments of reality and not necessarily dramatic events build, in image after image, into a symphonic sense of power and authority, its ritual and its maleness.” By using this technique of selecting partial images for the audience it allows a build up of information in a more subtle context. It still shows us the same information but in a far more clever and suggestive way, rather then the stereotypical images the audience are shown in the media. It is this altered take on photographing the orange order which gives Seawright’s images such power. It’s the fact that he doesn’t show images of the marches, but rather objects or partial glimpses of the members that have such a reputation. These images are not used to being viewed in such a manor. Fintan O’Toole states (O’Toole.F, 1995, Lie of the land) “This innate sense of menace is one of the striking difference in the approach to place of the Northern-based photographers. Another way of putting it might be to say that while the Southern-based photographers seem to carry a sense of place around in their heads, their Northern-based counterparts show us a sense of place that is literally carried around- on banners, uniforms, icons, in rituals, performances, displays. “ This is very true to Paul Seawright’s approach to the project ‘Orange order’ where the focus is on a subject of the objects, the uniforms, the rituals but in a way that it is suggestive and thought provoking. The images seem to come together like a strange dream sequence. Images such as Untitled (Fig.5) and Untitled (Fig.6) have a relation through the use of the white gloves, which play a big part in the rituals of the order, while other images appear not to follow each other and yet somewhat remain linked. And yet the ambiguity of the Orange order still seems somewhat mysterious as Seawright doesn’t seem to capture the identity of the members. The fact that while we have an inside look into the order, the audience is somewhat lead to believe there is still more to be unravelled. Seawright almost seems to probe quietly into the background and seems to work unnoticed amongst the members of the order.
In a similar way Paul Seawright’s collection on the Police force reflects the practice learnt on his work with the orange order. Seawright was offered access to the Royal Ulster Constabulary. It was his fascination with structures of authority which lead him to this work. He documented life of the RUC in the same fragmented style in which he had developed during ‘Orange order.’ The images are to give the audience a glimpse into the inner workings of the RUC, while functioning during the some of the worst periods of the conflicts. The images are set to baffle and bemuse in the oddity of some of the photographs. Val Williams states (Williams.V,1995, Inside Information) “[the images] are a fantastical narrative, made up of fragments and glimpses. They contain no literalness. A surveillance screen flickers and a bomb alarm hands incongruously between windows which show an untroubled scene of trees and roofs. A battered black chair sits in a room which colour be anything, from a place for a tea break to an interrogation cell.” And it is this great enigma which remains intact in all of his images that gives power, and even while these images are all about creating the expression of authority, it also manages to intrigue and inspire the imagination of the audience. Many of the Police images are dark and reflect the state of which many of the residents of Ireland view the police. However there is still something overly dominating about the images such as ‘Untitled (DOG)’ (Fig.7) and ‘Untitled’ (Fig.8) seem to ooze dominance and authority. The images relate back to the theory that the uniform automatically enforces dominance to the audience. Val William also continues to state ( Williams.V, 1995) “Studies in nature morte, they are luxurious and ornate, exercises in the baroque, verging on the fetishistic.” The cropping of both Fig.7 and Fig.8 both suggest a dominance that could relate back to fetishism. Both with the control over the submissive and yet powerful animal in ‘Unknown (DOG)’ Fig.7 but also the positioning of the camera in ‘Unknown’Fig.8 It almost suggests a dominance over the audience and demands respect, Which may reflect his own feelings towards authority in Ireland.
To conclude, through my exploration of Paul Seawright’s work and collection, I have learnt that as a photographer his work is highly influenced through his experiences. It is clear, his work reveals to the audience a sense of pain, violence and an apparent obsession with power and authority. However it is the techniques and ways in which Seawright selects and fragments his work which is the true command of his photographs. It is this disintegration of his photographs, the tight crops, and the creation of claustrophobia which allows the audience to relate and delve further into the imagery put forward. The meaning of the images is peripheral and creates a sense of mystery. The photographs manage to carry meaning and a narrative without feeling like they are meant to fit. He has created a way to keep the audience guessing, as well as a way to portray his statements subconsciously in the images.
