My Grandfather’s House, 2002
Photographs of interiors and details from a deceased relative’s home, shortly before the contents were cleared for auction. The interior of the house is shrouded in darkness while outside daylight prowls. A distressed 1960s aesthetic; flock wallpaper, florid soft furnishings, chintz and kitsch in the form of a life’s belongings, with all their intimate associations fall out of focus. They become diffused in an insistent light that strikes through blinds and curtains. Memories and daydreams form, drift and dissolve into a relentless present.

Undertakers, 1999
Interiors and details from an abandoned undertaker’s premises in Carrickfergus. The remains of rooms, where the deceased were prepared for burial, are captured in their own state of decay. Damp walls rot, plaster cracks, floral illustration submits to fungal patina. Moribund wreaths, urns and caskets lie amidst soap and other antiseptic agents. The pull string for a light hangs like a noose against Mop Top Beatles wallpaper and a fake marble fireplace. Details on interior fittings echo images of the delicate trim on burial garments, palls and drapes. Funereal spaces consumed by time.

Details of Sectarian Murals, 1998 – 2003
A series of abstract visual extracts from political murals drawn across the Province.

Gareth McConnell was born in Carrickfergus and now lives in London. He studied photography at West Surrey College of Art & Design and Royal College of Art, London. He works as a freelance photographer and is a visiting artist and lecturer at London College of Printing and Gwent College Newport 2004. Previous projects include; Institutions, Unit 2 Gallery, Whitechapel High Street, London 2003; Details of Sectarian Murals and Portraits and Interiors from the Albert Bar, Artandphotographs, St. James, London 2003; Wherever You Go, Lighthouse, Poole 2002; John Kobal Foundation, National Portrait Gallery, London 1999 and Anti-Social Behaviour Part One & Two, Gallery of Photography, Dublin 1998. A monograph of work from 1996-2003 is currently being produced and co-published by Photoworks and Steidl.

An archive of his work is available to view at: http://www.garethmcconnell.com

The gallery is open from 10am to 5pm Monday to Friday and from 11am to 5pm on Saturday.