Donovan Wylie (born 1971) is a Northern Irish photographer,[1] based in Belfast. His work chronicles what he calls "the concept of vision as power in the architecture of contemporary conflict" – prison, army watchtowers and outposts, and listening stations – "merging documentary and art photography".[1]
Wylie has also made films – in 2002 he won a British Academy Film Award (BAFTA) for The Train, a 50 minute documentary written, directed and with cinematography by Wylie.
Careeredit
Wylie was born in 1971 in Belfast, Northern Ireland.[2] He started photography in his teens while a pupil at Belfast Royal Academy, and at the age of 16 he left school and went on a three-month journey around Ireland. These travels resulted in his first book, 32 Counties, published when he was 18.[2] In 1992, at age 20,[2] Wylie became a nominee of the Magnum Photos agency, then a full member in 1998, and left the organisation in 2017.
Since 2000, he has completed various photographic and film projects exploring the religious identity, history, and the concept of territory, especially in Northern Ireland during The Troubles, post-ceasefire. His work has expanded over the years, and concentrates on the "architecture of conflict". His notable works include projects on The Maze Prison in Northern Ireland (2002 and 2007–2008),[2] British watchtowers (2005–2006), and the Green Zone in Baghdad (2008). He has also worked in China, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Israel, and Yugoslavia.
The Guardian's review of Wylie's Vision as Power exhibition at the Imperial War Museum in London stated: "Merging documentary and art photography, Wylie's images reveal both the impact of surveillance architecture on the natural landscape and the importance of surveillance in modern conflict."[1]
Wylie's book The Maze (2004) is included in Parr and Badger's The Photobook: A History, Volume II, and his Scrapbook (2009) is included in Volume III.
In 2013, Wylie was a Doran Artist in Residence at Yale University Art Gallery, a residency that resulted in a body of American work titled A Good and Spacious Land.[3] An exhibition of the work opened there in June 2017 alongside work by Jim Goldberg.[4]
In 2018/2019, as a response to Brexit, he travelled around the British Isles, photographing lighthouses from neighbouring coastlines.[5]
British Watchtowers. Göttingen: Steidl, 2007. ISBN 978-3-86521-499-7.
Scrapbook. Göttingen: Steidl, 2009. ISBN 978-3-86521-910-7. With Timothy Prus.
Outposts: Kandahar Province. Göttingen: Steidl, 2011. ISBN 978-3-86930-321-5. With an afterword by Gerry Badger.
North Warning System. Göttingen: Steidl, 2014. ISBN 978-3869307732.
Publications paired with othersedit
A Good and Spacious Land. New Haven, CT: Yale, 2017. ISBN 978-0-300-22299-9. A two-volume set with Jim Goldberg's Candy. With an introduction by Pamela Franks and essays by Christopher Klatell and Laura Wexler.
Filmsedit
The Train (Witness, episode 25) (2001), written, directed and with cinematography by Wylie – Channel 4/October Films, 50 minutes, produced by Liana Pomerantsev, Russian with English subtitles.
YoYo (2002) – Channel 4/October Films.
Jesus Comes To London (2003) – Channel 4/October Films.
The 12th (season 1, episode 3) (2003), directed by Wylie – 10 minutes, produced by Fulcrum Waddell Media.
^"Deutsche Börse photography prize 2010: the shortlist" The Guardian, 29 October 2009. Accessed 24 June 2017
^"The 2010 Deutsche Börse Prize shortlist" Francis Hodgson, Financial Times, 27 February 2010. Accessed 24 June 2017
^"Deutsche Borse Photography Prize 2010: Drusilla Beyfus introduces the four nominees for this year’s Deutsche Börse Photography Prize." Drusilla Beyfus, The Daily Telegraph, 18 January 2010. Accessed 24 June 2017
^"Photographs of Afghanistan by Donovan Wylie will go on show at National Media Museum" Telegraph & Argus, 26 August 2011. Accessed 24 June 2017
^Wright, Philippa. "Introducing Donovan Wylie's 'Outposts'", National Science and Media Museum blog, 10 August 2011. Accessed 1 May 2020