In Depth Interviews with an Irish Photographer and Activist

  

Photo: https://www.ppai.ie/photographer/23/Cathal-Noonan                                                   Photo: http://www.kathydarcy.com/about.html

I feel so privileged to have gotten to interview both an artist and an activist during my time in Cork, Ireland. I learned different lessons from both of these individuals and truly believe there words will inspire my final project whilst here in Cork. 

With my first interview with Cathal Noonan, I learned many different techniques and lessons. First, he didn't study photography in college and still has a solid career which I found to be quite inspiring. He started getting into photography during one of his sound engineering courses which incorporated digital photography. After that he was hooked, he photographed in college for a hobby and after getting a degree put together a portfolio, showed it to some people in Dublin, Ireland and landed a job photographing sports. Sports photography led him all over the world for ten years and taught him the value of being able to stay put. That is why he stopped traveling for sports photography and settled down in Dublin and now Cork working for PR firms as a commercial photographer. He gets to work with cool brands and also many charities which he is fond of. When asked who his inspiration is I found it very interesting that he said that social media changed the way inspiration comes because now, “You are opened up to the whole world because of social media”. This makes it easier to find inspiration all around the world. We then further discussed the importance of using social media as a photographer. Cathal described how important it is to create a brand for yourself to differentiate your work from others. This is where social media comes into play, he says that with Instagram, Facebook, etc… “You can dictate which way you want to go with your brand…it’s very important to have a strong brand online”. The conversation then moved into how to lad a job as a photographer. Cathal agreed that connections were huge when he decided to start doing freelance photography. He also stated that it is very important to “get your foot in the door” by doing jobs here and there. As far as his favorite part of being a photographer, he enjoys the process of creating photos from start to finish, which I can relate to. He also enjoys getting feedback on his art, something he also recommends all photographers do. In terms of what he doesn't like, he stated that working with clients is difficult because sometimes they don't share his vision, which is very hard as an artist. I truly enjoyed getting to know Cathal and learning more about him and what makes his work unique. 

My second interview was with the feminist prop. eight activist Kathy D’Arcy. Kathy has always thought of herself as a feminist and was very aware of gender starting at a young age. She spoke of how she used to write poetry about what it was like to be a girl and how gender always played a huge role in her work. As far as how she came to be an activist my favorite anecdote she told was how as a young girl her mother was very strict and religious. This landed her to hand out pamphlets at a pro-life rally. She remembered feeling sick inside afterwards and upset about how she felt about telling other people what to do with their bodies. She came out on the other side of that experience as an eighteen year old women's activist. Right now she is part of a group called the ‘Rebels for Change’ that is fighting for the repeal of proposition 8 which is making it illegal for women to have an abortion. However, her fight doesn't stop there. Once prop. 8 is repealed there is plenty of work to do in order for proper legislation to be put into place. In terms of what she does specifically for the cause, she is the go to writer for press releases and works directly with newspapers and media to get Rebels for Changes stories out there. She also stated that she would always be fighting for something. Kathy is also a well known poet so one thing we talked about is how her work and activism intersects. She stated that while they do go together she chooses to keep hers separate. She finds it difficult to write poems about abortion and feels that most of her energy right now needs to be on the repeal. I also loved how she and the Rebels for Change group make there cause performative and engaging. For example, we talked briefly about how she dresses up as Repeal Women at rallies and how other Rebels for Change members dress up as princesses to get young people involved and to lighten the mood at the rallies. Hearing about activism from Katy was truly inspiring because I too am very passionate about pro-choice legislature. Even as an American one can get involved by donating or as Kathy put it, ‘start the conversation’. 

Notes

Cathal Noonan

What got you started

-college (studied sound engineering) and one of the classes used a camera and he got hooked

-loved digital cameras and the instant 

-hobby in college

-put together portfolio and showed it to agencies around Dublin and the rest is history

-most photographers he knows didn't study it in college

Whats the favorite thing you shoot

-sports (thats where he started) it was his dream job

-he got to travel the world and cover sports events

-in terms of photography portraits are what he really loves shooting

• “portraits is what I really love shooting. I like it I suppose because its just one on one with a subject and you get a lot of feedback and stuff”
• works now with PR companies
• “no one pays for landscapes” 

Do you ever do shoots for a cause?

• Cancer research fund and leukemia at Mercy Hospital
• Charity Work
• Took photos of sick children and santa at the hospital

Do you have any artists that influence your work?

• not really because of social media
• “The whole world you are opened up to because of social media”

Do you use social media a lot?

- yes because it helps your brand

- “push your brand”

- “You can dictate which way you want to go with your brand…its very important to have a strong brand online”

How have you gotten jobs?

• Did sports for 10 years; got sick of it because of traveling
• wanted to go and work for himself because he had made a lot of contacts

Do you sell your work online?

• No he deals directly with clients
• Hard to sell work online
• “You really need to find your niche and focus on one thing and really excel at that”

What do you like best about your work?

• I love producing images and seeing the final result
• “I get a buzz of of that; seeing something, visualizing it, and seeing the result I really get a buzz off of that”

What don't you like?

• Dealing with clients
• They have a different take and they don't really care about your vision
• “When you are dealing with people in suits its never good”

Any tricks you've learned?

-getting feedback through another photographer

-get out there and start shooting

-do your own style, but get critiqued

What do people usually hire you for?

• PR
• shot for the city hall
• A lot of commercial work for Jameson Brewery
• Work for local newspapers and does portraits
• “You're never doing the same thing everyday”

How do you get jobs?

• PR agencies contact him
• Companies usually never contact a photographer; PR agencies do
• “Get your foot in the door”
• “A lot of luck involved, a little talent…”

Where is your favorite place to shoot around Ireland?

• beach near where he lives
• get away from everything 
• loves anywhere by the sea 

Kathy D’Arcy- Rebels For Choice

How did you get into activism?

• She has always have been writing about what it is like being a girl
• Gender played a huge role in her poetry

- Always been a feminist

- @18 she was anti choice fundamentalist catholic

- No friends

- Mother was very strict

- Vivid memory of handing out leaflets to people for anti-choice when she was a little girl

- Feels arrogant now that she could choose what other people could do with their bodies

- Came out other side with a feeling of duty to do female activist

- Mad that she felt she was raised to hate her own body

- Very passionate about it now

- Movement grew very slowly/class issue

- Amazing thing to be apart of; very busy until June

- Only the first step is to repeal; needs a lot legislation

Wok with children and young parents and babies that have been taken away

State health care provider and

Can’t talk about abortion formally

Work with members of clergy

Never stop being an activist

Does artist go with activism

-they go together; but her artist career is separate

- right now she is focused on repeal of the eighth amendment

- poetry isn’t priority

- difficult to write about poetry and abortion

- doesn't like forced political poetry

What do you do for the eighth amendment

• Media spokesperson for Rebels for Choice 

- Started 2 years ago

- Press release writer

- Newspaper

- Meetings

- Manages twitter

Are there spearheads for the movement?

- Huge centralized group called abortion rights campaign

- Feminists

- Rebels for change are one of the larger groups

Are their social programs for women who need an abortion?

• Not a lot to help them
• She can’t even say abortion or make calls; against the law

How can I get involved?

- Social events

- Street fairs

- Write in to the newspapers/government officials

- Start the conversation in America

- Show support

• Donate to Abortion Rights or Appeal The 8th

Can activism be performative?

- Yes; she acts as Repeal Women and has a Repeal Man too

- Princess for choice; activists dress up as princesses and go to rallies

- The best is that it is very colorful and very creative