Magnum Ireland

A visual cultural history of Ireland over the last 70 years, as seen by the world’s most prominent photographic agency, Magnum, and commented on by leading figures of the Irish literary scene.

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Available for the first time in an updated, compact paperback format, this book offers a stunning photographic survey of Ireland over the last seven decades, from the 1950s to the present day. Organized decade by decade, the images show the lingering influence of rural life in the 1950s; the hidden story of ordinary Irish men and women, living in a divided society during the troubled years of the sectarian conflict; the South’s huge economic growth at the end of 1990s, baptised the ‘Celtic Tiger’, and Ireland’s perpetual quest for identity, from the 1950s to the present day. Each decade is commented on by a notable contemporary Irish literary figure: Anthony Cronin, Nuala O’Faolain, Eamonn McCann, Fintan O’Toole, Colm Tóibín and Anne Enright invite the reader to dive into the social and political context of each period, providing a textual backdrop to the photographers’ work.