Description

Arthur Fields, Dublin-born of Ukrainian emigrants fleeing anti-semitism, was a street photographer who stood on O Connell Bridge for fifty years taking photos. He worked every day from the 1930s until 1985 aged eighty-four. Unknowingly, he became the unofficial family photographer of a city, having taken a estimated 182,500 photos of passers-by. When cameras were not within reach of normal people, Arthur provided a vital service taking photos of couples on first dates, people up in Dublin for a day, happy parents with newborn children, match-goers, and many more. These cherished photos form the basis of this collection. Each photo was submitted by its owner with a story and caption explaining the background. The photos bear witness to a changing cityscape, fashion, lifestyle, social habits and even camera technology. In terms of subjects, Arthur didn t just photograph everyday people but also famous celebrities, African princes, street characters and even future stars, such as a seven-year-old George Harrison, with his mother. The result is a window to an era when times were so different and photographs were taken to be cherished.
This is a uniquely crowd-sourced publication, the culmination of the Man on Bridge project, a national photo collection campaign.