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“Divorce Referendum’, protest at The GPO Dublin 1986” . A Photograph by Tony O’Shea.

6th July 2021, 12am

Today, in our “Artists Corner’, ICC Digital brings to you the third of six photographs from the gallery of the Irish photographer Tony O’Shea.

Todays photograph from O’Shea’s book and exhibition, ‘The Light Of Day’ is…

“Divorce Referendum’, protest at The GPO Dublin 1986” 

This evocative and powerful image O’Shea so beautifully  captures the pivotal and momentous moment, when  old Catholic Ireland stood defiant, while being challenged by the possibility of a new enlightenment.

Tony O’Shea , now aged 73, is a legendary Irish documentary photographer. His book  Dubliners occupies a pivotal role in the history of Irish photography and defines the territory that O’Shea made so inimitably his own – the everyday life of ordinary people, their joys and sorrows, their struggles and triumphs, the rituals that they use to make sense of their lives.

Despite a long career as a press photographer, O’Shea’s most enduring interest has not been in great events or well-known figures, but rather the myriad of small ways in which history is actually experienced, as something that happens between people, at home, on the street, wherever they happen to be.

Earlier this year Tony had an exhibition of his work commissioned and curated by  ‘The Gallery Of Photography – Ireland’, which was the first complete overview of O’Shea’s practice to date. The exhibition was accompanied by a new publication, Tony O Shea’s  “The Light Of Day” (by RRB Books), which has an essay by Irish writer Colm Tóibín.

About Tony O’Shea

Tony O’Shea studied English and Philosophy at University College Dublin and towards the end of the 1970s became increasingly interested in photography. By 1981 he had begun working full-time as a photographer with ‘In Dublin’ magazine and went on to work for Sunday Business Post for many years. His first book Dubliners, including a text by Colm Tóibín was published by Macdonald Illustrated.

Tony O’Shea’s photographs and his exhibition “The Light Of Day” are available to buy from ‘The Gallery Of Photography – Ireland’  https://www.photobooks.site/

His book “The Light of Day” is available to buy from RRB Books

His book ‘Dubliners’ is available to buy on Amazon

See many more photo’s by Tony O’Shea in our A’rtist’s Corner’ on ICC DIGITAL