People of Ireland
By Kristina Alvarez
The people photographed represent the new and old image of Ireland. Together, they work in a country they love so much, full of rich history and beauty.
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Photo 1: "So fear not the passing days, for like the song of the violin, you only grow sweeter with age." - James Otto
It's hard to walk down Grafton Street in Dublin, Ireland, without running into street performers known as buskers. Many of them play guitars, but it takes a special musician to catch someone's attention with a violin. This violinist played "Midnight Sonata" by Beethoven. He was one of many musicians who lined Grafton Street on a Saturday afternoon in Dublin.
Photo 2: "Asking a critic to name his favorite book is like asking a butcher to name his favorite pig." - John McCarthy
Tommy Cronin has been a butcher in Killarney for over 35 years. Mr. Cronin started his butcher shop in the heart of Killarney and is a town favorite. He models the personality of true Irishman: outgoing and a friendly personality coupled with a charming smile.
Photo 3: “We herd sheep, we drive cattle, we lead people. Lead me, follow me, or get out of my way.” - Gen. George S. Patton
Brendan Farris of Cobh, Ireland, has been a sheep herder almost his entire life. Farris showed Point Park University students a demonstration using his border collies. The dogs demonstrated how to move sheep left and right. Farris also demonstrated for students how the whistle commands were unique to each dog and how obedient they were to his commands.
Photo 4: "Got no money, got it made, got no place I can lay my head, it's hard to explain" - "Hard to Explain" The Riptide Movement
The band The Riptide Movement has been together since 2007 and recently added busking to its weekend schedules. The band members say busking is a great way for them to get their music heard by many people who haven't had the chance to hear them at other venues. The people on Grafton Street crowded around the band for more than an hour as they played its set list.
Photo 5: "We are only puppets. Our strings are being pulled by unknown forces." - George Buchnar
This puppeteer shows his emotions and feelings about the people passing by through the motions of his puppet. He wasn't too happy about Jeremy Stone's boots, so he motioned the puppet to lay down in sorrow on the street. People pass him by on Grafton Street and throw one euro his way every once in a while. A man and his puppet have to make a living some how.
Photo 6: “A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer; it sings because it has a song.” - Maya Angelou
This man's bass voice boomed as he sang opera on an early Saturday morning on Grafton Street. He stood very still, only his lips and hands were to move. But throw a euro in his hat, and he'd gladly take a bow. Spots come few and far between on Grafton Street for performers. This opera singer shared a spot with the puppeteer toward the end of his performance.
Photo 7: "Every block of stone has a statue inside it, and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it." - Michelangelo
Don't be fooled. It's not a brass statue standing there, but a man with willpower covered in brass colored paint. Many walked past without giving him a second glance. Only when a euro was thrown in would he move and show his true identity as a man of Ireland.
Photo 8: “There is no such thing as bad weather. There are only different kinds of good weather.” - John Ruskin
Don't be fooled. The wind was still in Dublin this day. A busker wired his coat and tie, as well as groomed his hair to appear wind blown. Perfectly still he stood, no matter who posed with him or who took his picture. His pose was perfectly still. Drop a euro in his hat, and he drops his briefcase and thanks you for your generosity.
Photo 9: “My guitar is not a thing. It is an extension of myself. It is who i am.” - Joan Jett
Two teenagers paired up to play guitar and bass on Grafton Street. The two barely looked up from their instruments, which coupled quite well with the alternative style of music they played.
Photo 10: "A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love. " - Max Muller
Flower vendors lined the streets between musicians and positioned themselves close to ATM machines. They aren't just vendors; the woman photographed was very knowledgeable of flowers and knew that the brighter the flower, the more likely it was to be sold.
Photo 11: "Being a doorman is like being a full time gentleman. I get to open many doors for beautiful women." - Michael O'Riley
While on the tour of Dublin, we passed by The Marion Hotel, which employed an old fashioned doorman. His uniform was very traditional, and the style of the hotel was traditional as well.
Photo 12: "By the time a bartender knows what drink a man will have before he orders, there is little else about him worth knowing. " - Don Marquis
Martin, a bartender at the Danny Mann Pub, poses behind the bar. He was reluctant to have his picture taken, but I was happy that he agreed. The bartenders of Ireland serve drinks in pubs that are filled with food, fun, and live entertainment every night.
Photo 13: "The fool wanders; a wise man travels." - Thomas Fuller
Tour guide Michael Martin gave Point Park students history about the town of Cobh and led them on a walking tour. While on the tour, students had the opportunity to see the port where the Titanic had set sail from in Ireland. They also saw statues and memorials in memory of those who died on the Lusitania.
Photo 14: "The candyman can cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good." - Willy Wonka
John Reidy, the owner of John M. Reidy candy and liquor store in Killarney, Ireland, has been in business for quite some time. His candy shop also serves as a liquor store, as well as a small bar that has four wooden stools and two beer taps of Guinness.
Photo 15: "A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step." -- Lao Tzu
Belfast is a drastic difference from any other place in Ireland. Our tour guide showed us the troubling sights of Belfast and how the war between the Catholics and Protestants is over, but murals and barbed wire fences still remain throughout the city.
Photo 16: “Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and cannot remain silent.” - Victor Hugo
Two teenaged friends bang bongos on Grafton Street. The two not only were there to provide entertainment for those passing by, but also by the looks on their faces, they were entertaining themselves. Their drums could be heard for more than four blocks away, and people danced to their drum beats as they walked past.
Photo 17: “And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.”
Turning the corner of Grafton Street back towards Christ Church, the sound of a harp filled the air. She played as if no one was listening or watching, never looking up from the strings of her harp. She played traditional songs but never stopped for more than a second to continue playing.
Photo 18: "A painter paints pictures on canvas, but musicians paint their pictures on silence." - Leopold Stokowski
Musicians not only line the busy sidewalks of Grafton Street but also the side streets. Mostly small instruments such as the accordion and the tin whistle are instruments that take a back seat on the side streets.
Photo 19: “A horse is the projection of peoples' dreams about themselves - strong, powerful, beautiful - and it has the capability of giving us escape from our mundane existence.” - Pam Brown
Horse drawn carriages lined the streets of Killarney. The men cared for their horses for hours, feeding and brushing them to ready them for a hard days work. Carriage drivers served as tour guides through the city and solicited their business to any passer-by.
Photo 20: “The Irish gave the bagpipes to the Scotts as a joke, but the Scotts haven't seen the joke yet.” - Oliver Herford
After a riveting medieval dinner at Bunratty Castle, Point Park students were greeted by the echoing sounds of bagpipes in the courtyard.
Photo 21: "We have come dangerously close to accepting the homeless situation as a problem that we just can't solve." - Linda Lingle
Ireland is facing the same problems most countries, including the United States. Unemployment is at an all-time high, and the housing market is in a serious decline as a result. Many people have been faced with the trouble of being homeless and are left to beg for money from others in order to make it to their next meal.