Peacebuilding a shared Northern Irish society
Transmitting photographic energy of colour and love: Hannah Starkey’s Northern Ireland peace women by Allan LEONARD 4 June 2023 As part of the Belfast Photo Festival and in partnership with the Ulster Museum, artist Hannah Starkey gave a talk about her previous work and current exhibition on display, Principled and Revolutionary: Northern Ireland’s Peace Women.... Continue Reading →
Citizens Wallpaper: a co-produced community visual story by Allan LEONARD 21 March 2023 Four “canvasses” of photographic images, covering the northern part of the island of Ireland, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Irish Sea, are part of an exhibition that was launched by Kellie Armstrong MLA in the Long Gallery at Parliament Buildings, Belfast.... Continue Reading →
Exposure therapy: Natural Connections exhibition by Allan LEONARD 17 June 2021 Belfast Exposed launched its exhibition, “Natural Connections”, which showcases 60 shortlisted images, from over 1,400 received. The competition ran earlier this year, asking people to submit images that represented connections with nature, which “sustained, surrounded, supported, and encouraged people and communities” during the pandemic.... Continue Reading →
Documenting natural connections through photography by Allan LEONARD 10 April 2021 Melanie Law, who has just joined the Eve Blair Show on BBC Radio Ulster, interviewed Christopher Barr and me for her inaugural feature (at 26:00). The discussion was on photography and a competition that Belfast Exposed is hosting, in conjunction with Translink and Arts... Continue Reading →
Book review: Irish Summers (Harry GRUYAERT) by Allan LEONARD 21 March 2021 Harry Gruyaert’s work is recognisable by its saturated colours of thoughtfully chosen hues. The interplay with light is also crucial. There are images in Irish Summers that exemplify such decisive moments, when colour and light come together to satisfy Gruyaert’s quest for sensual... Continue Reading →
Book review — Old Ireland in Colour (John Breslin & Sarah-Anne Buckley) by Allan LEONARD 14 March 2021 Old Ireland in Colour is an ongoing project of colourising black and white images by photographers in Ireland in the late 19th to early 20th century. The catalyst was John Breslin working on colourising some photos of... Continue Reading →
Book review: A Pocket History of Northern Ireland (Richard Killeen) by Allan LEONARD 29 December 2020 Occasionally I am approached for an image to be used in a book publication. Recently, this was for one that I made of a mural celebrating the television series, Derry Girls. Disclosure: I granted permission, with payment, for the... Continue Reading →
Altered Context: A New Parameters project by Allan LEONARD 20 July 2020 New Parameters was an online engagement project, with participants creating images of their responses to the arrival and presence of the COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland. The Nerve Centre hosted collaboration, through video calls and the online platform, Slack. The following is my... Continue Reading →
"And then there is the phenomenon known as Derry Girls. A television comedy written by Lisa McGee and set in Northern Ireland in the 1990s, it has been a runaway success both with the public and the critics. The show won the IFTA Gala TV Award for best comedy in 2018; McGee won the best... Continue Reading →
Book review: Anna Lo: The Place I Call Home by Allan LEONARD 15 August 2019 Anna Lo writes with a crisp and concise manner, demonstrating her fine skills in English that she makes reference to in her memoir. The Place I Call Home is a chronological story, from her childhood to current retirement. It gives... Continue Reading →
The 1998 Belfast/Good Friday Agreement gives legal recognition to the coexisting and overlapping national citizenships in Northern Ireland, entitling those born in the jurisdiction to be British, Irish, or both. The devolved administration codifies the traditional political identities of “Unionist” and “Nationalist”, as well as an opportunity for “Others”. The accord has also pledged greater... Continue Reading →
“In my imagination, it was true”: Margins of Excess exhibition artist talk by Max Pinckers by Allan LEONARD 14 June 2019 As part of the Belfast Photo Festival, Belfast Exposed is hosting an exhibition of Margins of Excess, by Max Pinckers. The artist gave a talk about this project in the gallery, describing how he... Continue Reading →