Having blogged about Eve Arnold's images of Ireland before, a few months ago I came across these wonderfully poignant images of John and Angelica Huston, taken in the Huston's Galway home, St. Clarens, in 1968.
Loneliness is not necessarily considered a bad thing in Ireland. Every story, every song is nostalgic, even the place itself is soft and wet ... There are signs of the past everywhere, they are part of everyday life.
Without my Irish childhood I would not know the names of the plants and flowers in my mother’s garden, would not know how to ride a horse, walk in the rain, sing plaintive songs about the country I miss and love the most. I would not understand the vagaries and the delights of nature, the clouds racing overhead, the smell of turf and sheep’s wool, the cold, the black bogs, growing up with dogs, The Sisters Of Mercy, fairies, and the best Christmases in the world. The West of Ireland! The Big House, as we called it, was at one end of a fork in the avenue, across a waterfall, surrounded by meadows and a ha-ha, a sort of hidden ditch, which allowed an uncluttered view of grazing horses. It was Georgian, built of limestone, it was a good size, three storied, not huge. - Anjelica speaking of her Irish childhood.
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These images are copyrighted to Eve Arnold's estate/Magnum photos, and be found here.
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Cinema North West’s Adaptation Film Festival takes place on the 19th - 21st October in Dromahair, Co Leitrim. This year's retrospective focuses on John Huston.
