Liam Lyons

Professional photographer Liam Lyons lives on the shores of Clew Bay, where Croagh Patrick, Ireland's holy mountain, comes and goes, forms and dissolves constantly in the sun and cloud. His surroundings have been a source of constant inspiration throughout his career. Now retired, Liam was the first Irish photographer to have been awarded an honourary Fellowship for Landscape photography from the Irish Professional Photographers Association. His work hangs in many homes around the world including the White House and the state residence of the Irish President. Currently, Liam is working with Mayo County Library archiving 50 years of his photographic career.

Throughout his career, assignments by the Irish and International media have brought before his lens dignitaries such as Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Princess Grace of Monaco, Pope John Paul II, Nobel Prize and Lenin Prize winner Sean McBride S.C., Gene Kelly and many others.

He has had many successful exhibitions in the US and Europe. His work has been published in international newspapers, magazines and books and has adorned many book covers. He was appointed as an external examiner of the degree course in Photographic Studies by the Dublin Institute of Technology, Ireland's school of media. Another special interest is his ongoing photo-safaris in East Africa to highlight the needs of the local people.

Awards include:

Fellowship in Landscape Photography (FIPPA)
The Irish Professional Photographers' Presidential Honours
The Irish Professional Photographers' Associateship Award (Portraiture)
Press Photographer of the Year (Picture Essay)
Kodak Professional Awards

The internationally acclaimed Irish poet, Desmond Egan, who has worked with Liam on one of his published works wrote the following:

"The landscapes of Liam Lyons are remarkable. They awe in the face of creation. His famous images of Croagh Patrick, a holy mountain, full of mystery and in communion with the clouds, are certainly some of the finest photographs I have seen anywhere. True works of art.

I would suggest that a typical Liam Lyons photograph manages to combine such a mixture of spontaneity and silence, in the same way that Patrick Kavanagh managed to do. The comparison is interesting: like Kavanagh, Lyons manages to conceal techniques within the larger demands of theme. Like him too, he has a spiritual, integrated view of life. I shall conclude by saying that, for me, Liam Lyons is a remarkable photographer and that his best work - like that of any true artist - is a dialogue with time, space and light, the metaphors of our existence - will survive".