Joya: AiR / Denis Mortell / Ireland
"I went to Joya: AiR with an open mind, not fully knowing what to expect. I left, after two weeks, with a heightened sense of the importance of our climate and our resources. For a short time, it was another way of living.
What I found also gave me at least one, possibly two new series of images. The breath-taking landscape, the way of life and the people I met were hugely stimulating. I walked and photographed four to five hours every day. “La Muela” (literally, “the molar” - a mountain which dominates the surrounding landscape and the local town of Vélez-Blanco) and, separately, the constant battle with and for water, were two themes I felt I couldn’t ignore.
Thanks to Donna and Simon at JOYA for making it all possible".
Denis Mortell
Denis Mortell is a fine-art and commercial photographer based in Dublin, Ireland. He is currently in the final year of an MFA Fine Art at Goldsmiths College, London, having previously completed an MA at National College Of Art and Design, Dublin and History of Art at University College Dublin. He has exhibited at Irish Architectural Archive, Dublin (solo) NCAD, Dublin (group) Kamera8, Wexford (group) and Tenderpixel Gallery, London (group)