During that time we went back and forth to Ireland to spend time with family, have holidays, travel around and get to know the locals. What struck me about Ireland then was the pace of life. It kept in time with the seasons. There was no rush to do things. I felt I had stepped back into my childhood in the 1950s 
 
The west coast of Ireland in particular, seemed to be caught in a time trap. Gradually towards the end of the 20th Century it started to show signs of catching up with the rest of the world as tourism opened up the sleepy villages. The naming of the coastline as the ‘Wild Atlantic Way’ was one lever, the other was the European funding for the infrastructure that made it a more attractive proposition for private investors. Suddenly, new buildings were springing up everywhere. The long tradition of emigration away from Ireland reversed and the population started to grow. Then the bubble burst with a huge worldwide economic crash.
 
These photographs were taken just before that crash. They speak of communities intertwined with the landscape. Of farming families that made a living from the land, often in ways that had not changed for hundreds of years.
 
This is the second book by David Gilbert Wright in the f8 Documentary Monograph series.
 
You will like this small book if you are interested in visual anthropology and black & white photography of the past.