Capturing souls, one pic at a time

SMALL PRINT:JOHN MINIHAN is one of Ireland's finest photographers, and a new exhibition at the United Arts Club in Dublin celebrates his work.

Famous for its understated and intimate tone, his photography reflects his humility and ability to remove himself from the image, revealing his subjects often at their most private and vulnerable.

The exhibition contains, among others, images of Athy, his hometown in Co Kildare, which he returned to throughout his life as a source of “normal human life”.

It also features his famous photographs of Samuel Beckett, whom Minihan befriended in the late 1980s. The playwright, who had previously been rarely and poorly photographed, allowed Minihan to take a now famous portrait in 1985 at the Hotel PLM in Paris (above).

It was later described by James Calder as having captured Beckett as his true self, “a man looking into the abyss of the world’s woes”.

The exhibition also offers a chance to visit the United Arts Club at No 3 Upper Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin 2. The exhibition runs until May 3rd, see dublinarts.com.