Gerry Balfe Smyth’s first solo exhibition, last breath, is a series of photographs documenting life in the south inner city flat complex St Teresa’s Gardens in Dublin’s liberties area. The pictures, inspired by and endeavouring to capture the spirit and resolve of the people in this once-massive public housing project, built in the nineteen fifties and neglected for generations.
In the mid-eighties, the south inner city heroin epidemic was at its height. St Theresa’s Gardens flats complex was one of many deprived communities in Dublin that had been flooded with the drug. Dealers were operating on a level that had not been seen before and neither police nor government was equipped to contain the situation. Many young lives were wiped out through addiction and families torn apart, with little or no support from the state.
Over time, the residents fought back and the Concerned Parents against Drugs group did a lot to reclaim their community. Forced evictions of dealers and nightly patrols by the residents were the only way they could begin to address the problem.
Now with regeneration in its final stages, a small number of residents remain. Most of the buildings have been demolished and the occupants moved to different locations around the city. These people are now dealing with the reality of transitioning into new neighbourhoods and establishing a new identity and sense of belonging.
The images were taken over a seven-year period, before regeneration had begun highlighting the struggle to stay alive, to be clean, to endure, another reminder that social integration and inclusion must be accompanied by economic investment for it to have a chance. The pictures are the last breath of a vibrant community before it is finally laid to rest.
Until May 13
