'Westmeath is so beautiful'
NLI – EPA Photographer-in-Residence covering Westmeath
Image 1 of 3
Thomas Flynn of Flynn’s Renewable Energy, The Downs. As well as HVO, Thomas has ‘Wood To Go’, for which he sources timber from renewable forests and processes it for domestic use. Recently he has opened a storage for hire facility. Thomas is pictured by NLI-EPA Photographer in Residence, Paula T Nolan, who is compiling a selection of photos from across every county to be added to the national collections at the National Library of Ireland. PAULA T NOLANImage 2 of 3
Starling Murmuration at Lough Ennell as captured by Paula T Nolan as part of her nationwide tour. PAULA T NOLANImage 3 of 3
A photograph of Mullingar Royal Canal Greenway by Paula T Nolan. A selection of photos from across every county will be added to the national collections at the National Library of Ireland. PAULA T NOLAN“I had a wonderful time in Westmeath – I had no idea how beautiful it is,” said professional photographer Paula T Nolan, who is travelling around the country, taking pictures for a joint National Library of Ireland and Environmental Protection Agency initiative.
Paula saw the murmurations at Lough Ennell, the greenway, Flynn’s of The Downs, and Milltownpass bogs and solar farm. Arriving in town by train, the Dublin based photographer checked in at the Bloomfield House Hotel, Mullingar, hired a bike, and set off exploring.
First, she cycled to Milltownpass, where she visited the national heritage site bog and solar farm, and a commercial bog.
Later she met up with murmurations enthusiast Philomena Brady, “who is 70 and had just done her 100th night of this murmuration season”. Philomena gave Paula a lift to Ladestown on two consecutive evenings and “now we are pals, and she is going to be in the national archives of Ireland”, Paula said.
Then it was back on her bike and to Flynn’s of The Downs, where Paula met Thomas Flynn, who gave her a tour of his solar farm and HVO biofuel operation. She said she was impressed by how passionate Thomas was about the whole operation.
As she cycled the Royal Canal Greenway, Paula marvelled at how “wonderful it is” and how lucky we are to have such a long stretch of greenway within the county.
Paula is going around the 26 counties “recording things that people are doing that are connected to the environment, working with ordinary people and with the EPA, capturing the environment as it is now”.
Another part of her project is to take pictures of streetscapes and landscapes and compare them with pictures of these areas that are among the 5 million photographs in the national archives.
“I have done a lot of the main streets in towns, then and now, and every county has at least one old and one new, but 80 percent of what I am doing captures the environment as it is now,” Paula said.
Last May, Paula was appointed the first ever photographer-in-residence by the National Library of Ireland, in conjunction with the EPA. Her project is entitled ‘ReViewing Ireland: A Photo Study of Ireland’s Environment’, and involves travelling to all 26 counties, via public transport, over the course of a year.
She is connecting with EPA scientists and experts to learn more about the landscape she is photographing, and how the changing climate has affected how they look, or how particular sites are used today. Over four seasons, Paula will capture images of environmental interest and compare them with the National Library of Ireland’s vast photographic collection.
“There is no subject closer to my heart, more important to us all, than the survival of humankind and nature in light of the threat posed by the climate crisis. I am grateful for an opportunity to work visually with the subject, with people who know more than I do, to create a body of work that captures a year of Ireland’s environment,” Paula said.
Dr Audrey Whitty, director of the National Library of Ireland, said: “We are delighted to hear so far about Paula T Nolan’s travels and work. Her work embodies the NLI’s mission, which is to collect, protect and make accessible the recorded memory of Ireland.
"This residency also embodies two key pillars of the NLI’s Strategic Plan – reveal and engage – as it will encompass the land and seascapes of Ireland by way of impact and inspiration,” she said.
Laura Burke, director general of the EPA, said: “Over the last three decades, the EPA’s role has been to protect, improve and restore Ireland’s environment, through regulation, scientific knowledge and working with others. This partnership between the EPA and the NLI will create an invaluable archive for the next 30 years and beyond, showcasing the state of our environment in a new and inspiring way.
“I am excited that this project will bring cultural and scientific knowledge closer together and cultivate a richer understanding of our environment at such a critical time – asking where we are, where we’ve come from, and where we are going.”