We recently had a friend over from the U.S. to visit, and one of the things she mentioned she wanted to do was visit Kilmainham Gaol Museum in Dublin. I was excited that she had mentioned that, I have been wanting to see it as well, as I am interested in the history of Irish independence, the subsequent civil war, and architecture - it did not disappoint.

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Notes About Planning Y0ur Visit

One thing to be said if you are planning to visit Kilmainham Gaol Museum yourself, it is an extremely popular site for visitors and you’ll need to book your tickets well in advance. Tickets are released for availability 28 days in advance, and they book up quickly we found out by waiting until a few days before. They do open cancelations between 9:15-9:30am each day, and those go very quick as well. Fortunately, we were able to get cancelation tickets for our group. And it was worth the effort to get the tickets, as we all enjoyed the tour, and we typically don’t like taking guided tours.

The Experience

Our tour guide Tom was not only knowledgeable, as you would expect, but was good at putting the story together including his personal connection to Kilmainham Gaol. The stories are heartbreaking, from the execution of political prisoners of the The Easter Rising of 1916 and the fight for independence, people sentenced for begging for food during the famine, to toddlers who were imprisoned and often forced into labor. There is plenty of historical accounts in print and online, that share the history better than I, and I encourage you to look it up prior to, or after your visit.

Beyond the initial entry to the guided tour, you are not allowed to take video, which was fine for myself as I was taking photos where I could without loads of people in the shots. I hung towards the back of the group so I could compose my shots after people stepped out of each area, then quickly catching up to the group.

I didn’t get any photos of the court room or chapel as it would have been disruptive to the group and tour guide. Sitting in the hard pews of the chapel, you start to get a sense of how cold the prison was, and the lack of empathy in such facilities. Yes, it is a prison, that held its share of criminals, petty to hardened, but it is those who were imprisoned for working towards independence, a better life, or systematic failures of society that I am thinking about. Babies imprisoned with their mother’s. Orphan children in prison for begging for food. And Joseph Plunkett (a leader of the Easter Rising of 1916) and Grace Gifford who were married in the chapel, just hours before he was executed.

Entering the west wing (built late 1780’s), Tom shared that the only source for light and heat during the famine was a single candle per cell, you can get a sense of how awful the conditions were, cold, damp, and over crowded. Cells meant for one person frequently held 5 or six people. And that candle, it was one per week.

The despair of being imprisoned aside, the east wing, which was opened in the 1850’s is impressive looking. The architecture is cool, and this is the reason it has been used in movies. I have tried to capture it, but there is no replacement for standing there in person. It would have been nice to have access to see the upper levels. Taking a photo from the mid-level would have been preferred in my view. If you hang back just a moment you can probably get a photograph with nobody else in the image. But more impressively, having a moment, standing there alone to look at the space, well I am not a good enough writer to put what I felt into words. You just have to experience it, and I would tend to believe each of us will feel it differently.

The tour is concluded in the Stonebreakers’ Yard, where there is a small cross with flowers at each end. These crosses mark where 14 leaders of the Easter Rising of 1916 were executed by firing squad, one of the most important events in Irish history and the fight for Irish independence. It is heavy standing there in the yard. I would imagine even more so for those Irish born. As I was waiting to take the above photograph, there was a woman in her 80’s (I would guess) with her son, who was about my age. She had a hand on the cross, praying, and I could see her tears. You could feel her anguish. The street photographer in me wanted to snap a photograph of the scene in front of me, but I chose not to, it felt too personal. When she looked up she saw me with the camera, and said to her son “that man took a photo of me”. Thankfully, he recognised I was just waiting and told her so. I was glad I had refrained taking the photograph. Side note: I am struggling with my personal ethic code of street photography, maybe more on that another time.

The Photographs

As a photographer though, the Kilmainham Gaol is so fascinating, so many photographic opportunities. If only you could roam freely without the constraints of being on a guided tour. I could easily get lost in time photographing the prison. It was a bit difficult to fully enjoy the guided tour, not be the annoying guy hanging back to get photos, and to be present in the experience, but I feel I pulled it off. I got some photographs I am happy with, got a sense of what conditions where like when the prison was in use, and Tom shared enough, that I was interested in learning more about Kilmainham Gaol, and those who were imprisoned with in its walls.

If you are in Dublin, you should put the Kilmainham Gaol Museum on your list, and Photo Museum Ireland.

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On the flip side, it was nice to walk about the quay and town with so few people. Great for photography. And fortunately, we did find a place to have and ice cream.

Anytime we drive from Waterford to Cork or south of there we pass JJ’s Diner. I actually took the time to pull over to take a couple of photographs. Last time I stopped there, I didn’t have my camera with me. Now I try to take it with me whenever we are going somewhere.

My family is pretty patient with me taking photo when we are out, as long as I don’t abuse it. Though I had extra leeway for this trip as it was my birthday. Occasionally, if I find a cool scene I can even get them to let me get portraits of them. Ian was glad to stand in for this portrait.

Before I wore out my families patience. Bribing them with ice cream and guilting them that it is my birthday only goes so far. I captures the below around the Youghal Quay. This town was perfect to black and white photography, as much of it had a timeless feel to it, and there were so few people out and about.

Camera: Sony A7 IV

Lenses: SIGMA 35mm F1.2 DG DN | Art & SIGMA 85mm F1.4 DG DN | Art

Post Processing: Capture One, Photoshop & Dehancer

Dave Haworth Photography & Motion - my website

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