Tallaght, Dublin 1985, from The Light of Day
Tony O’Shea
Tony O’Shea, Tallaght, Dublin 1985, from The Light of Day
About the Artist:
Tony O’Shea (b. 1947) 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 later for the Sunday Business Post. His first book Dubliners, including a text by Colm Tóibín was published by Macdonald Illustrated in 1996. A legendary figure in the context of Irish photography, O’Shea’s work occupies a pivotal role in the history of documentary practice here. Beginning in 2017 Gallery of Photography Ireland undertook the work of digitising O’Shea’s extensive archive. As a result of this a major retrospective titled The Light of Day was co-published by RRB Books and Gallery of Photography Ireland in 2020. The exhibition of that work will be staged in the Gallery in December 2022.
Details: Archival pigment inkjet print on Hahnemühle Photo Baryta, 50x70cm (paper size), uneditioned print, produced 2021, acquired for the National Photography Collection 2022.
The Light Of Day by Tony O’Shea
About the book
The Light of Day – Tony O’Shea
The Gallery of Photography Ireland & RRB Photobooks are pleased to present The Light of Day by Tony O’Shea. The book is a retrospective of Tony O’Shea’s work, spanning 4 decades from 1979 to 2019 and is published to coincide with an exhibition of his work at the Gallery of Photography Ireland in 2021. A programme of events will be announced in early 2021.
The book is produced in an edition of 1000 copies, including 100 copies with a signed and limited silver-gelatin print of ‘Welcoming home the Irish team after reaching the quarter-finals of Italia ’90, Dublin’.
About the National Photography Collection:
The National Photography Collection builds on the Gallery’s sustained commitment to supporting artists in the development and promotion of their work. Through collaboration, we hope to grow the collection as an archive repository offering an overview of photographic practice in Ireland.
As an essential critical and historical resource, the National Photography Collection is an exciting initiative for the Gallery and for the future of Irish photography. We are deeply honoured that the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins has agreed to be Patron of the Collection.
The artists featured in the Collection are:
Ciarán Óg Arnold; Enda Bowe; Noel Bowler; Ala Buisir; Simon Burch; Dorje de Burgh; Krass Clement; Shia Conlon; Martin Cregg; Mark Curran; Ciaran Dunbar; John Duncan; Tessy Ehiguese; David Farrell; Kevin Fox; Paul Gaffney; Clare Gallagher; Emer Gillespie; Karl Grimes; Anthony Haughey; Seán Hillen; Patrick Hogan; Tobi Isaac-Irein; Dragana Jurišić; Jamin Keogh; Jialin Long; Markéta Luskačová; Shane Lynam; Alen MacWeeney; Dara McGrath; Moira McIver; Yvette Monahan; Tony Murray; Brian Newman; Kate Nolan; Miriam O'Connor; Kenneth O'Halloran; Mandy O'Neill; Tony O'Shea; Pete Smyth; Nigel Swann; Harry Thuillier Jr; George Voronov and Róisín White.