Truce
Throughout The Troubles, the old seaport town of Larne has remained a loyalist stronghold, despite the bitterness and rivalry of paramilitary groups such as the UVF, UDA and IRA. The resulting violence culminated in the 400lb bomb attack on the Kings Arms hotel in 1980, the IRA claiming responsibility.
The BBC reported in 2002, where a Protestant man and Catholic girlfriend were ordered from their house by masked gunmen, smashing the windows of their house in the loyalist Craigyhill Estate. Other Catholics,driven from their homes and Larne itself, by rival paramilitaries, resulted in a desolate Larne with overgrown trees, isolated houses and ubiquitous graffiti.
My dad is an ice cream man. In my youth I toured the Larne estates with him and witnessed the devastation. Now again, touring those estates in my dad’s van, now armed with my camera, I have tried to capture what I saw before.
Each shot was from within the van, using the window as a frame to limit the view. I have tried to capture the misery of Larne counterpoised by the joy created by the arrival of an ice cream van. I feel this can almost make the endless shots of ugliness begin to appear beautiful.
