First edition of Gareth McConnell by Gareth McConnell. First impression. Medium format hardback in fine condition. About Gareth McConnell’s work is dominated by successive series of simple but highly eloquent portraits of outsider figures, survivors who have lived life to an extreme. Born in Carrickfergus, McConnell’s own experience has been shaped by the violent tensions of Northern Ireland’s recent history and there is a strong autobiographical element in the dialogue and empathy he develops with his sitters. From his powerful portraits of loyalists in the Albert Bar in Carrickfergus to the photographs of an exotic community of young ex-pats in Ibiza, McConnell’s work blends matter-of-factness with disarming intensity. Using only natural light, his photographs celebrate the fragile momentary encounter, while transforming it into something memorable and enduring.
