A journey into history

One of Dave Kai Piper’s ongoing projects is chronicling abandoned dwellings in Ireland. He shares his tips for shooting historical buildings with Niall Hampton

- Niall Hampton

From little acorns do mighty oaks grow… here at Digital Camera, we always recommend having one or more photographic projects in progress at any one time. They’re a great way of honing your skills and developing a style, not to mention keeping motivated if your creative batteries have run low and need recharging.

Photographer Dave Kai Piper has many well-strung bows in his quiver, as a look at his website will attest. And while you’re there, you can also see his photography that documents the ‘forgotten homes’ of Ireland.

While travelling around the countryside on his motorbike or by car, Dave kept coming across derelict cottages and houses; with his initial curiosity piqued, he reached for his camera. Pausing to appreciate these forlorn buildings, and how he could best capture them, Dave built up a series of images collected from various trips to the Emerald Isle – a nation that, as he notes in his blog, “has a deep cultural connection to the land.”

But the land can’t meet the employment needs of everyone in rural communities, so Ireland has seen many young people depart to built-up areas. This migration has helped swell the number of abandoned rural houses to an estimated 230,000, many of which could be restored to habitable standards. Set against this, there are around 6,000 homeless people in Ireland, and Dave hopes that his work documenting these houses will raise awareness of this issue.

“Ireland is a beautiful country with some of the most warm and kind people you’ll find, but this is one aspect of a larger picture,” he says. “There are some deep changes and challenges facing Ireland’s rural population. It’s under threat from modern disadvantages such as slow internet and a lack of work.”