TU Dublin Graduate Exhibition 2023

My name is Melanie Byrne. I am an Irish photographer who is currently working as a medical photographer. I believe it is very important to make use of visual media to re-tell stories about family and places. My photography allows individuals to collectively come together to help and understand each other. I aim to learn from photographers in other cultural and geographical parts of the world who actively gather archival photographs to show how telling multiple personal histories contributes to the memory of shared experiences. Communication is very important to me. I have learned how photography is a two-way communication.

How Did We Get Here?

This project is constructed around the themes of anxiety and loneliness to raise awareness about mental health and the struggles many people face. The images are narrative in character, suggesting how people can adopt strategies of water therapy and retreat to the forest, as ways to support physical and mental wellbeing. Drawing on the Japanese practice of Shinrin Yoku, this series of photographs of young women and men in water or in the forest, encourages us to spend more time in nature and to appreciate it. Other consistent features include the wearing of white clothing, as white is a symbol of purity. Photography allows us to explore difficult topics such as mental health creatively and expansively. As a photographer, my work focuses on storytelling and on representing how the body may be culturally interpreted.

Are You Staying For A While?

This project is constructed around my grandmother and her home while bringing her past memories to light. This series is inspired to give awareness to dementia patients by using photography to capture and create a memory through the struggle of isolation. This series is a visual diary of everyday living that is presented using distinct size formats while representing the stronger memories of the past and present. Recent memories are starting to fade every day, so it is important to capture these amazing things to show my grandmother and family.