Vermont Center for Photography

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Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More

Alen MacWeeney

- Jun 2009

In 1965, well known Irish documentary photographer Alen MacWeeney came upon an encampment of itinerants in a field by the Cherry Orchard Fever Hospital outside Dublin. Then called tinkers, and later known as Travellers, they were living in hard-used but richly colored caravans, ramshackle sheds, and time-worn tents.

MacWeeney was captivated by their independence, individuality, and endurance, despite the bleakness of their circumstances. Though an outsider, he slowly realized he had fallen into a deep pool of a hidden Irish culture. He photographed and tape-recorded a wealth of Travellers traditions, and captured a perspective of life overlooked and disregarded. The raw beauty of his subjects, and perhaps their deep Irishness, stripped down to their rough and tumble lives, was a captivating experience to him, and to everyone who views his photographs.

MacWeeney became accepted by the Travellers and began to take photographs. Over five years, he spent countless days and nights in the Travellers caravans and by their campfires, drinking tea and listening to their tales, songs, and music, rarely shared or exposed to camera or tape recorder. In 2007 he published his fifth book of photographs, entitled Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More, which is accompanied by a CD of their music.

A selection of images from the exhibit

  • Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More
  • Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More
  • Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More
  • Irish Travellers, Tinkers No More
VCP would like to thank the following sponsors for their support of this exhibit;
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