Kevin Hamilton

What first drew you to photographing architecture, and how did your practice evolve into creating kaleidoscopic compositions?

From an early age I have always been drawn to buildings and structures. I am from a family of architects and builders as a result I developed an appreciation of all types of traditional and modern architectural styles from an early age. Photographing my environment was a natural way for me to study buildings around me. Having grown up in Belfast at the height of the ‘Troubles’ I was very aware of tradition; how that term was a way dividing people rather than something to be celebrated.

Where I am from locations and buildings have a history and association with one cultural side or another.  I want my work to be a celebration of beauty which has been lost previously.  I took details from locations which had traditional links to differing cultures; such as Stormont castle, (which had been the administration centre for the British government) or Millfield (An Irish Republican site). I wanted to create work that focused on the beauty within the structures not its historic affiliations, I honed in on small overlooked details and created compositions divorced from the one sided histories.

A voyage of discovery does not necessitate the travel to far off places but can start by just learning to see what we know and take for granted in a new way, revealing beauty which had been hidden from sight.

Kevin Hamilton | Belfast | 2021

Your work combines precision and abstraction. How do you balance structure with creative experimentation?

It is important to me that my work is a creative bridge, figurative and abstract qualities side by side in the same piece. My work is most successful to me when it retains small just recognisable details of the structure or location that is taken from. It is the viewpoint and the combination of reflection which moves the piece away from simple documentation and more into the realm of abstraction. Finding that bridge is the aspect of the work that can take the longest; experimenting with the viewpoints taken, balancing the documented details with the radical new shapes and forms created with reflected imagery are the real creative aspect, the voyage of discovery. Making subtle changes in the arrangement or zooming into a small detail is the real magic for me. It still fills me with awe, the same awe I had when looking at the world through a kaleidoscope with mirrors and coloured glass.

Kevin Hamilton | Venice | 2023

Could you describe your process—from selecting a building to the final composition? How do you decide which details to highlight?

Reasoning behind the choice subject matter is a difficult to pinpoint, it is a difficult process. In a structure I am looking for sharp crisp detail, perhaps a decorative cornice or frieze this is particularly important in looking at white structure. Colour is the next thing; it could be in the use of warm sandstone quoins or jambs with a carved keystone. However, this is not always the case I have found beautiful forms within the rusty riveted structures found on bridges and around docklands or modern glass and steel structures devoid of traditional decorative can reveal the most interesting combinations of texture and pattern.

Once settled on a location I record it photographically, isolating the detail examining the subject from every angle or perspective. Mapping the building returning to the location at differing times to record the effect of light and contrast

From the 300 to 500 shots of the location I can then start building the kaleidoscope composition of the location. In the choice of shot I am looking for patterns and textures or repetitive forms, often settling on shot which show contrasting layers of pattern and colour- views looking through arches, perhaps catching a contrast of light and shadow.

When I have made my choice of image then it’s a case of making finer adjustments, contrast, colour balance, further zooming in to reveal the hidden beauty. To create a piece I would have numerous sketches, test pieces working out which photograph transforms into a kaleidoscopic collage.

For me success is a piece that has that very fine balance of abstraction and figurative quality. Each work must have a documentary element; something that is recognisable. Coupled with this, a uniqueness of form which is revealed through the reflected of the detail giving a whole new perspective a whole new way of seeing.

Kevin Hamilton | Barcelona | 2024

Many of your works feel like visual mandalas. Do spirituality, meditation, or symbolism play a role in your creative vision?

I personally find the whole process from the taking of photographs to the creation of the kaleidoscopes genuinely uplifting. Photographing buildings such as cathedrals, universities or civic buildings gives me the opportunity to truly see and truly marvel at the beauty within the structure, at times taking my breath away.

My first contact with a location is generally contemplative, just looking; enjoying the structure taking in the forms, the patterns, the texture. Really looking is such an important part of the process, which sometimes is overlooked, quiet contemplation is highly recommended. This meditative way of seeing is the best way I believe to appreciate what I do. Each kaleidoscopic piece I do has an air of intrigue, a fragment of recognisable form which links the piece to the location. Often this can only be seen after genuine meditative examination.

Kevin Hamilton | Dublin

How do the cities you photograph—like Venice, Amsterdam, or Belfast—influence the tone or structure of each piece?

I have been extremely fortunate to see and record so many wonderful and amazing locations. One cannot but be influenced by the surroundings one is in; in Barcelona my work was influenced by the vibrant light and colour, from Vienna my work is drawn from the shapes and forms of the Imperial grandeur.  Each location is different and provide a myriad of aspects and perspectives. When photographing in different locations I must approach each location with a very open mind, without preconceptions. A location may not be as expected; at times it is not the highly decorated or well documented aspects of a location but a small apparently insignificant detail such as a glimpse view through an archway or a hinge on a door which provide me with the best subject matter and the most unique piece. I find it is often the case I see more potential when revisiting a second or third time.

Kevin Hamilton | Prague | 2024

Your art invites viewers to “look again” at familiar places. What reactions have you observed from people recognizing a landmark in an unfamiliar form?

My work is not commonplace, although photography is my medium it is not a documentary tourist shot, I want my work to be a signpost, to help people recognise the beauty around them. In my work I am analysing and then reconstructing locations that people apparently know, by creating a different perspective I am challenging my audience to see all environments differently. What I really want to see is everybody really looking. Appreciate the world around, see the beauty, take your focus from your phone.

I have seen bemused disbelief on the faces of many who see the work, trying to work out or reconstruct the location in their head, often places they see everyday seem completely different.

One solo show at the gallery from the Linen Hall Library was based on the Victorian centre of Belfast, each piece was presented without a title or name plates. The gallery goers were encouraged to find the location from each piece by raising their eyes and actually taking notice of the environment. Feedback from this show was very positive, helping all who were involved appreciate small details.

Kevin Hamilton | Amsterdam | 2025

How do you see your work contributing to the dialogue around urban space, memory, and cultural identity?

Notions of Culture or Heritage have in the past, where I am from, been distorted into labels or even a stick to beat ‘the other side’ with. Through my work I am challenging us to see where we live in a new way. In Ireland we are more than thatched cottages or flags, my work takes what we know and turns it on its head… literally. My work creates a different way of looking at what we see every day; everybody in Belfast knows the City Hall or the GPO in Dublin, but seldom do we actually look at the detail or beauty of our built environment because of the perceived cultural links with one or other tradition. I want people to celebrate the environment we live and work in.

I want everybody to be aware that the miraculous is all around, all you have to do is look or know how to look, my work emphasises the positive aspect of our culture. The legacy of the past has been a source for many artistic works, For years terms such as culture or heritage have been abused in the North, ‘culture’ has been used as a political stick to divide communities. Heritage and culture is the focus of my work but not in a ‘traditional’ way. Through my work I am challenging us to see Ireland in a new way, my work focus’s on the dynamic and positive highlighting the best of Ireland. I take the traditional and redefine it showing the intrinsic beauty which can be appreciated by all.

The world can be seen in a different way only if you try and really see, I hope my work can help us move towards a greater appreciation of all environments around us.