Bridging a gap between generations whilst keeping memories alive

Stephanie McGovern is a Kells native turning her passion for abandoned places into a platform to promote Irish heritage and culture.

A professional copy writer and award winning photographer, she has been inspired by the 15,000 followers on her Ireland Deserted Facebook Page to bring her writing and imagery to the masses offline. To answer that call, she has developed a set of images and writings, a unique take on Irish history, now available on her newly launched website www.irelanddeserted.com

With the development of her emotive set of storyboards, the objective of the work is to reconnect us with our sense of nostalgia and national identity in this melting pot of the EU. This work harks to the wisdom of previous generations, addressing the sage advice of 'The Irish Mammy' and our sense of love for children in 'Mo Chailín Bheag, My Daughter'.

Hanging on walls from Ireland to Nova Scotia, she addresses our famine history in The Workhouse Collection. It is a collection of images and short poems, aimed at educating the diaspora on the finer points of our story.

Her storyboards are currently on supply at the Irish American Heritage Museum in New York and are described by the Director, Elizabeth Stack, as: "The perfect blend of sentimentality and realism".

Stephanie describes what she's doing at the moment as "the natural solution to promote our national identity in the home, while bringing the stories of past generations back to life. I'm delighted to see how well they are received in Ireland, as well as Stateside". She has a self proclaimed love of older people and enjoys their wisdom, she's simply bridging the gap between the older generation and the younger and providing a beautiful wall mountable talking point for anyone with a similar sense of Irish culture.

The work is constantly expanding, inspired by her followers stories and being very well received on the website. The Meath Chronicle have followed her work on many fascinating and forgotten places, none less than the Print Works in Kells. For those with an interest in the wisdoms of old Ireland, the work can be followed on the website or on her social media channels.