Making Visible the Invisible: Photovoice with Justice Involved Women in Ireland

Lynn Clarke-Hearty showing Uachtarán na hÉireann, Catherine Connolly, around the exhibition. Image ©Julie Corcoran.

I was incredibly honoured to be asked to be involved with a very special project by Sutherland School of Law Doctoral Scholar at UCD, Lynn Clarke-Hearty. Lynn secured funding under the project realisation fund from Create Ireland to produce an exhibition, zines, photobook and associated workshops with women from the Dóchas and women from the SAOL Project.

The exhibition was launched on Friday, 2nd October by Uachtarán na hÉireann, Catherine Connolly. I was honoured to be asked to photograph the event. See all the photographs here.

The Project

Making Visible the Invisible builds on research that explores women’s experiences of prison and

life after prison in Ireland. It aims to give visibility to those whose voices and living/lived

experiences are invisible in research, policy discourse and Irish society generally. First, a

photography exhibition will be held that features photography, annotated titles and commentary

pieces co-created with women in prison and the community. Second, a zine or photobook will be

published that is co-authored with the women involved in the research using their self-chosen

pseudonyms to protect their identities. It is intended that both the exhibition and the

zine/photobook will be co-created with the women previously involved in the research.

The project aims to combine co-developed research and photography from two projects. The

first, Dóchas in Focus, is a prison-based study with women who are currently serving or have

served a sentence in the Dóchas Centre, the Mountjoy female prison. The second, SAOL on Bail,

is a community study with women who have experience of prison and the criminal justice system,

facilitated by SAOL Project, a community-basedorganisation and education centre in Dublin. The

two research projects used the innovative method of Photovoice to explore women’s experiences

of prison and life after prison in Ireland through photography, critical discussion and a showcase

exhibition. Women involved in the research were given cameras to take photographs either in

prison or the community. What has emerged is a profound artistic expression of the women’s

experiences of imprisonment and criminalisation.

In sharing this important work, academics, criminal justice stakeholders and wider society will

be invited to the exhibition. The voices, as well as the living and lived experiences of women

research partners will be centralised. The exhibition and zine/photobook will provide a unique

opportunity for women involved in the research, including those who may not be able to attend,

to use their voices and share their knowledge and experience through visual art with diverse

audiences and community.

The Exhibition