Portrait of Mourne

in Books by Simon — April 15, 2010 at 3:16 pm | 2 comments

Portrait of Mourne, the second book from the Northern Irish photographer Simon Watterson, is a photographic exploration of the beautiful country that is Mourne … In 144 pages the author captures the spirit of the area from its coastal fringes, through the high peaks of the mountains and down through the forests and rolling countryside. Mourne means so much to so many different people and the books examines Mourne from many different perspectives. Few people realise just how important the area was, and continues to be, in the development of the wider region. Without the water from the Mournes the industrial development in the Upper Bann Valley and Belfast would have been severely restricted; and while the area still provides huge volumes of water for the spreading urbanisation in the Belfast Metropolitan area it also provides a refuge from the hassles of life in urbania.

From the jacket text of Portrait of Mourne:

“It is hard to surpass the elegance of the words of Percy French when he described how ‘the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea’. Mourne is situated in the south of County Down and is dominated by the mountains that take their name from the area. The Mountains of Mourne are a relatively small range, both in terms of the area covered

and the heights of the peaks, but this modesty is deceptive and belies their extraordinary importance for thousands of years in shaping the northeast corner of the island. The mountains were an important natural defence for the Kingdom of Mourne where the Mughdhorna settled in the twelfth century and they became of key importance in the development of Belfast as a population centre in the 1900s. Granted city status in 1888, the Water Commissioners of Belfast turned to the Mournes to provide the water needed for the rapidly growing city. The construction of the Silent Valley Dam and the 22-mile Mourne Wall changed not only the mountains but also the economic outlook for the whole of the country.”

Martin Carey, Chief Executive of the Mourne Hertiage Trust says of Portrait of Mourne: “We very much welcome this publication. It complements the role of the Mourne Heritage Trust and raises awareness of the special qualities of the Mournes area. It’s good to see locations featured that are off the beaten track and people get to see the lesser known places. It’s a very valuable addition to the pictorial publications there are about the Mournes and I’m sure it will prove a popular read for people.”

Tags: County Down Mourne Simon Watterson