Introduction
ABOUT JAMES
James was born in 1971, close to the rural town of Newmarket in North Cork, Ireland. In 1990 he moved to Cork City where he later studied film (with emphasis on camera and lighting design) and worked in film making, music and theatre, producing works which were presented and screened at film festivals and on national television. His love of photography and illustration grew from these experiences. Since 2006 James has been exhibiting widely in Europe and Asia. In 2011 he published his first photobook called “Border Country” , a black and white photo series, through Kehrer Verlag. In November 2011 ‘Border Country’ received the predicate “Selected Title” of the prestigious Deutscher Fotobuchpreis 2012. The follow up to “Border Country” entitled “After Place 1: Südgelände” was released in 2012. James lives and works in Trins, Tirol.
Photography, like so much in life, works in
mysterious ways – for me, anyway. And for
me I feel the only grand plan is that there is no
grand plan.
There are, of course, lots of little plans, most
of which lead straight into the sand. It’s all a
matter of going on, taking the best photographs
I know how and waiting patiently for
explanations to emerge.
Sometimes, in frustration, I impose mumbo
– jumbo rationale on them, but that just makes
matters worse. Allowing the photographs to
assert their meaning requires a very long
patience.
These series of photographs began several years
ago. At the time I didn’t know I was beginning
anything at all, least of all something that I’ve
come to recognize will not be ‘finished’ in
my lifetime.
James Clancy
