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Black and white photography has always facinated me - the ideal medium in my mind for documentary photography. People, landscapes, buildings and their interaction captured in images that are stipped back to their core essence. Behind each is a story of love, pain, joy or hardship. A history waiting to be told.
' The War in Spain - travels in the steps of the Waterford International Brigadistas, 1936- 1938'.
Delighted to get this up and running as part of the annual commemoration of the Waterford men who joined the 15th International Brigade and fought Franco and Fascism 90 years ago. Franco led the brutal revolt against the democratically elected government of Spain, in what was a curtain raiser for his allies' (Hitler and Mussolini) assault on humanity.'
Adelante - 90 years - on the Waterford Men who Fought Franco' takes place on Friday 1st May at 17.00 with the annual wreath laying ceremony at the 15th International Brigade memorial at the Bishops Palace in Waterford to be followed by the unveiling of a plaque in the adjoining Colbeck Street marking the arrival of the the men back to the city in the old Sinn Fein Hall which was on the street.
A talk by myself then takes place in the Garden Room of the Medieval Museum on the lessons for today as our world pivots towards the same fascist nightmare the men resisted in Spain.
The event will finish up with an evening of song, spoken word and music in Jordans on the Quay.
My thanks to the Waterford Local Government and Health Branch of Fórsa for sponsoring the exhibition.
The full set of iimages from the exhibition and additional ones not displayed will be uploaded here after 6th May 2026.
'RETRO 40 - On a Night Like This'
An expanded collection of images exhibited in Jordans, Waterford as part of the city's Imagine Arts Festival in late October & November 2025. Shot in black and white on 35 mm film (Ilford FP4 HP5 & XP2) in the early to mid 1980's, it features then emerging young bands ( incl. Neuro & The Village), Waterford Arts For All (kids street and adult pub theatre), and the city's first steps into the realm of professional theatre, Red Kettle Theatre Company, among others. Digitised and re-edited in A3 and A4 prints, some of the images were first shown in an exhibition 'On a Night Like This' in Garter Lane Arts Centre, Waterford in 1986.
To see the expanded collection click on Collections/Projects/Exhibitions
About me
My name is Eoin Ronayne. For many years a senior trade union leader until my retirement in September 2024, I started my professional life working as a Broadcast journalist with WLR FM and RTE in the 1980's. Time now for a new journey as a documentary photographer. My first exhibition 'RETRO 40 - On a Night Like This' was shown as part of the Imagine Arts Festival in Waterford, Ireland, in late October/November 2025. Currently I'm working on an exhibition 'The War in Spain - travels in the footsteps of the Waterford International Brigadistas, 1936 - 1938' for exhibition in the city in late April/early May 2026.
Get in touch
Do you have a question about my work, would like a copy of a print or have a proposal/suggestion for a photo documentary project in black and white,? Please leave me a message here.