An exhibition at The Braid in Ballymena is to feature a range of late Victorian and Edwardian era photographs – captured just before the outbreak of the First World War.
The photographic exhibition entitled ‘With an Artist’s Eye’ showcases 100 photographs selected from the Mary Alice Young Collection - held at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI). Mary Alice was the eldest daughter of Sir Francis Macnaghten of Dundarave House in Bushmills and she married into the Young family of Galgorm Castle in 1893.
Mary Alice Young’s great grandson, Christopher Brooke of Galgorm Castle, initiated a partnership with PRONI and Mid and East Antrim Borough Council to share the photographs with the public - assisted by his sister, Juliana Grose.
The photographs cover a range of themes from intimate family portraits to leisure time pursuits,alongside the natural world and working life beyond the gates of the big house demesne. Some of the photographs are more experimental in style and demonstrate an artistic temperament and a willingness to try new things as the art of photography changed with technological innovations.
Launching the exhibition at a civic reception this week, Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Alderman Noel Williams,said:
“I am delighted to officially open this historic exhibition of period photographs entitled ‘With An Artist’s Eye: The Photography of Mary Alice Young of Galgorm Castle’. As a Council we are pleased to be an active partner in this exhibition’s development and to host it at The Braid in Ballymena.”
The exhibition also provides background information on the technical and preventive conservation techniques employed by PRONI, while placing Mary Alice Young in context as a female photographer in late 19th century Ireland.
The exhibition will be open until Saturday 4 February 2023, when it will transfer to the Public Record Office in Belfast as part of their Centenary year programme.
Admission is free. A free souvenir brochure is also available for visitors.
