Beyond Home - In-gallery Talk with Ron O'Donnell

Ron O'Donnell is a photographic artist renowned for his dazzling constructed and narrative photographs, his images are vibrant, daring and humorous and have touched upon allegory, myth, identity, mortality, and politics. Stirling Photography Festival in partnership with Street Level Photoworks of Glasgow are delighted to present Ron, at the Tolbooth Gallery, in his first ever exhibition in his home town.

This uniquely curated exhibition traces Ron's developing creative journey throughout his career as a photographer and visual artist.

From street photographs of Edinburgh taken during the 1970s, the collection then moves toward more constructed imagery, culminating in digitally composed works that reflect a shift in both technique and vision over the decades.

"Together, the work traces an evolving dialogue, and my own changing approach to the art of photography."

Join Ron for this intimate in-gallery talk, as he shares personal stories of his career and creative journey, through his work.

About Ron

Ron was born in Stirling and grew up in the Raploch, spending childhood days playing around the castle rock and making regular visits to the Smith Institute. Ron went on to take up photography as a career, working at Stirling University as staff photographer. Moving to Edinburgh Ron studied photography at Napier, where 50 years later he is now a senior lecturer.

Ron is a visual artist whose work embraces photography, constructed imagery, and digitally composed pieces. His work has been exhibited widely including at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh; Centro de la Imagen, Mexico City; Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, Montreal; California State University, Los Angeles; Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Jerusalem; Walker Arts Centre, Minneapolis. O’Donnell’s work is held in private and public collections including the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh; Victoria and Albert Museum, London; Musée National d’Art Moderne Centre Pompidou, Paris and Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. Ron has been the recipient of various awards including a Leverhulme Trust research project grant, Creative Scotland Travel grant, and the Fox Talbot Award for photography.

https://www.ronodonnell.com

Photo Credit: Michael Prince

Our Hosts

The Stirling Photography Festival is delighted to be hosted once again in the Tolbooth Gallery.

Parking is available in the Old Town Jail car park opposite the Tolbooth, for those attending the eveny. Spaces are limited and on a first come first serve basis. There is on street parking, for which there will be a charge.

Visit here for more details about the Tolbooth and its full programme of events.

https://stirlingevents.org/tolbooth/

Please note that 20th September is Stirling Pride so you may wish to plan additional time to get to the Tolbooth

About the Stirling Photography Festival

The Stirling Phorography Festival is Scotland's only festival dedicated to the art of photography. Events and exhihitions run throughout August and September at venues across Stirlingshire - please see here for our full programme of events and exhibitions for 2025.

As a volunteer led community festival we aim to inspire creativity, develop skills and build community. All events are free to attend and so we rely on donations and sponsorship. Please see here how you can support the festival.