Hy-Brasail: Isle of the Blest – An exhibition of new photographs by Drew Leventhal

Hy-Brasail: Isle of the Blest
An exhibition of new photographs by Drew Leventhal
4–26 June 2026
Hall of the Red Earl, Druid Lane, Galway

The mythical island of Hy-Brasail lies hidden somewhere off Ireland’s west coast. Appearing on maps for centuries yet never conclusively found, it remains a phantom land shrouded in mist and legend. According to folklore, Hy-Brasail reveals itself for just one day every seven years. The photographs in Isle of the Blest were taken on that day, on the shores of an island that does not exist.

Created using a handmade glass pinhole camera, Drew Leventhal’s images depict an Irish landscape steeped in time, mythology, and memory. Reflections within the camera’s glass walls produce spectral forms that hover across the photographs, obscuring and revealing the landscape in equal measure. Developed in collaboration with artist Ashley Harris, the camera itself challenges conventional ideas of transparency and opacity in photography. The resulting images, printed on glass panels, emerge subtly from their surroundings, inviting viewers to look closely and peer through the fog.

Drew Leventhal (b. 1995) is a photographer from the United States whose practice is informed by his background in anthropology. Through investigations of ritual, colonial history, and the meanings embedded in landscape, his work explores what it means to be human. He holds a BFA in Anthropology from Vassar College and an MFA in Photography from the Rhode Island School of Design. His work has been exhibited in galleries and museums across the United States, and he has been recognised as a finalist for the Aperture Portfolio Prize, the Film Photo Award, and the PhMuseum Grant. He was the recipient of the 2022 Lenscratch Student Prize and a 2016 National Geographic Young Explorer. Leventhal is currently a 2025–2026 Fulbright Scholar in Ireland.