Mongrel was coming to an end as I was coming into my own.
Although it was one of those things that you don't realise are really happening as they are happening, the beginning of college was opening my eyes to a world beyond school books. The idea that a newspaper might actually not be the most boring thing in the world or merely reading something for enjoyment that wasn't a novel or a girl's fashion magazine. I didn't fully understand some of the articles in Mongrel, its finer points were lost on me due to my youthful ignorace but I liked the idea of quirky stories and lots of photos. Plus it was free. And the handiest place for me to pick it up was in an off-licence on my way home from town, which in itself was a bit exciting.
So when Richard Gilligan, photographer extraordinaire, came into college to give us a talk I knew who he was. I'd seen his skateboarding photographs and recognised the name. He talked us through a slide show generally outlining his career thus far and toward the end put emphasis on the work he had done in fashion. His first collaborations were with his friend Aisiling Farinella and the whole thing started out a bit by accident. It was a case of friends calling on friends to help friends to cover friend's backs... But it worked. Really well. And now they're both still doing what they did, but doing it better and getting paid for it too.
So a week later I introduced myself to Aisling.
In addition to being a freelance stylist she runs The Loft in the Powerscourt shopping centre as well as her own shop Circus; and when I spoke to her we were in the Powerscourt centre as she had produced the fashion show that was running that night. I explained my situation to her and she said if I e-mailed her she would see what she could do in terms of providing me with the opportunity for work experience.
Many e-mails later she proved true to her word and we were having coffee together as she laid out the day's plan of action. We were to spend the day pulling clothes from shops for two upcoming photoshoots - one commercial and one a more personal project. I was dressed for the cold day but by mid-afternoon my many layers of cardigans had been shed as the mountain of bags I was carrying grew increasingly heavier, and the pavement pounding coupled with the heated air conditioning of shops got the better of me. The day came to a close in her studio hanging everything on rails and laying out accessories and filing away the important bits of paperwork.
I was to assist on the editorial shoot. It was for a Dublin-based magazine called Oh! Francis and she was Richard was the photographer.
The day of the shoot began in her studio at 8am. Aisling the drove me, the model, and the make- up artist to the location where Richard was awaiting our arrival. The location for this particular shot was an old manor house in the outskirts of Dublin city, surrounded by fields of horses and reached by entering through wrought iron gates and up a tree-lined gravel drive.
As Aisling and Richard have worked together so much in the past there was a really good understanding betweed their visions, each knowing what the other wanted and a compatibility of working styles. As assistant I had little donkey jobs such as carrying the blankets to keep the model warm, holding props for lighting effects, making tea, and just general running back and forth getting and doing things.
They were two really long days, by the end of each I could think of nothing but my bed. But I learned a lot more than any classroom could teach, it really is the hands-on approach that hammers it home... Here's a few of my photos from the day
Although it was one of those things that you don't realise are really happening as they are happening, the beginning of college was opening my eyes to a world beyond school books. The idea that a newspaper might actually not be the most boring thing in the world or merely reading something for enjoyment that wasn't a novel or a girl's fashion magazine. I didn't fully understand some of the articles in Mongrel, its finer points were lost on me due to my youthful ignorace but I liked the idea of quirky stories and lots of photos. Plus it was free. And the handiest place for me to pick it up was in an off-licence on my way home from town, which in itself was a bit exciting.
So when Richard Gilligan, photographer extraordinaire, came into college to give us a talk I knew who he was. I'd seen his skateboarding photographs and recognised the name. He talked us through a slide show generally outlining his career thus far and toward the end put emphasis on the work he had done in fashion. His first collaborations were with his friend Aisiling Farinella and the whole thing started out a bit by accident. It was a case of friends calling on friends to help friends to cover friend's backs... But it worked. Really well. And now they're both still doing what they did, but doing it better and getting paid for it too.
So a week later I introduced myself to Aisling.
In addition to being a freelance stylist she runs The Loft in the Powerscourt shopping centre as well as her own shop Circus; and when I spoke to her we were in the Powerscourt centre as she had produced the fashion show that was running that night. I explained my situation to her and she said if I e-mailed her she would see what she could do in terms of providing me with the opportunity for work experience.
Many e-mails later she proved true to her word and we were having coffee together as she laid out the day's plan of action. We were to spend the day pulling clothes from shops for two upcoming photoshoots - one commercial and one a more personal project. I was dressed for the cold day but by mid-afternoon my many layers of cardigans had been shed as the mountain of bags I was carrying grew increasingly heavier, and the pavement pounding coupled with the heated air conditioning of shops got the better of me. The day came to a close in her studio hanging everything on rails and laying out accessories and filing away the important bits of paperwork.
I was to assist on the editorial shoot. It was for a Dublin-based magazine called Oh! Francis and she was Richard was the photographer.
The day of the shoot began in her studio at 8am. Aisling the drove me, the model, and the make- up artist to the location where Richard was awaiting our arrival. The location for this particular shot was an old manor house in the outskirts of Dublin city, surrounded by fields of horses and reached by entering through wrought iron gates and up a tree-lined gravel drive.
As Aisling and Richard have worked together so much in the past there was a really good understanding betweed their visions, each knowing what the other wanted and a compatibility of working styles. As assistant I had little donkey jobs such as carrying the blankets to keep the model warm, holding props for lighting effects, making tea, and just general running back and forth getting and doing things.
They were two really long days, by the end of each I could think of nothing but my bed. But I learned a lot more than any classroom could teach, it really is the hands-on approach that hammers it home... Here's a few of my photos from the day
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