'Seeing is Believing? Murals in Derry',
|
| Editors | Paul Hippsley Declan Carlin Cathy McGandy |
| Photography | Jim Cunningham |
| Design | Liam Farren Michael McCarron |
| Typesetting | Gavin Quinn Joe Mc Allister |
| INTRODUCTION |
| DEVELOPMENT OF MURALS |
| THE FOUNTAIN |
| FREE DERRY CORNER |
| PLATES |
| CITYSIDE |
| WATERSIDE |
| WHAT NEXT? |
| PLATE INDEX |
| SOURCES |
| INDEX |
Our thanks to Manus Martin and the Training and Employment Agency for their continued support under the Action for Community Employment (ACE) Programme. Also to Derry City Council's Recreation and Leisure Department for providing generous Community Services Grant Aid which is greatly appreciated.
Special thanks also to the following members of the Press for their help in producing this book: Martina McLaughlin, Charles Curran, Adrian Kerr, Jim Lecky, Karen O'Leary, Carol Hippsley and to Mary Minihan for allowing us to reference her own murals manuscript.
Our appreciation to Arlene Wege, Edel O'Doherty, Séan Semple, Jim Hughes, Hugh Gallagher, David Bigger and the Orchard Gallery for contributing photographs.
We also extend our thanks to Inside Out muralists, Sinn Féin (Derry), Ken Rooney, the Fountain Area Partnership, Ciaran Crossan of the Linenhall Library, and Dove House Resource Centre for dating and identifying the locations and artists responsible for the murals.
Particular thanks are due to Bill Rolston and May McCann for offering expert and constructive comments which helped to clarify the text.
We gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the
Cultural Relations Department of the Community Relations Council
which aims to encourage acceptance and understanding of cultural
diversity.
© Guildhall Press September 1995
ISBN 0 946451 31 1
Designed and published by:
GUILDHALL PRESS
Community Book Publishers
41 Great James Street
Derry
BT48 7DF
Northern Ireland
Tel: (01504) 364413 Fax: (01504) 372949
[New address above]
If you want to know what is actually occurring inside, underneath, at the centre, at any given moment, art is a truer guide than politics, more often than not. (Percy Wyndham Lewis [1884-1957], author and painter.)
The notion that art can reflect reality is no longer limited to the field of academic criticism. Media portrayals of the conflict in Northern Ireland have consistently used murals as indicators of the political climate at a given time. Murals are an art form as well as a public expression of feeling and identity. They are more dynamic than political commentary and, to a larger extent, freer from the constraints of censorship and control.
As the media seem to have realised, the paintings that have emerged from within both the Catholic and Protestant communities over the last 25 years reveal much about the cultural conflicts and power struggles that exist in this country. To help us understand these problems, this publication examines a cross section of wall paintings in Derry since the latest phase of the troubles began in 1968. It explores murals and their place in the community, the representation of murals by the media, the motivations of artists and local perceptions of their art form. In addition, it includes a collection of photographs of murals in Derry, both past and present, which reflect the cultural diversity of both traditions in Northern Ireland and examines the role of murals as cultural emblems, boundary markers and political art. The book also highlights how the symbols and signs used have different associations for people, depending on their individual perspectives.
The political messages expressed by murals in Derry are intrinsically linked to their geographical location and the cultural and religious majorities living in those areas. Consequently, Seeing is Believing? examines four areas of the city where murals reflect the dominant political ideology of those specific communities.
The river Foyle physically separates the Waterside from the Cityside,
but these areas are also polarised by their cultural and political
traditions. They are therefore treated in two separate chapters
in the book. Within the Cityside area, the Fountain Estate and
Free Derry Corner warrant specific attention because of their
unique position in the history of Derry. The Fountain derives
its name from an actual spring that served the needs of the people
during the Great Siege of 1689. This area has remained a Protestant
stronghold in a predominantly nationalist Cityside ever since.
Free Derry Corner in the heart of the Bogside has become an important
icon in republican imagery since its establishment during the
Civil Rights movement of the late 1960s. Consequently, the murals
which have emerged over the years in these two areas are vital
testaments in the history of conflict in Northern Ireland.
Murals are a transient medium and their existence is often a direct
comment on, and reflection of, prevailing social conditions. It
is equally important therefore to consider murals which no longer
exist as well as contemporary ones. Their documentation in this
publication ensures to some extent that their message and significance
will be preserved long after the paint fades or is overwritten.
Derry is an important cultural location in the North West. It has a Catholic/nationalist majority and, although it has never fully assimilated the Protestant/unionist tradition, the city does, however, occupy a central position in its history and psyche. Derry's Walls, the Apprentice Boys, the annual burning of an effigy of Lundy and the 1689 siege are all pivotal ingredients of the Protestant ideology adhered to by Orange Lodge members not only in the north of Ireland, but as far afield as Glasgow and Canada.
The Great Siege, which elevated Derry to such an important level in Protestant culture, was linked to the Catholic uprising of 1641 and the subsequent retaliation of Protestant settlers (brought over for the Plantation of Ulster) who were seeking to secure ascendancy. This was achieved in 1688 when William III, a Protestant king, captured the English throne from the Catholic King James II. It is widely believed that political events in Derry directly affected the power struggles in Europe in the 17th century.
There is a symbolic value attached to ownership in a society where land rights and foreign occupation have long been a source of contention. Painting and marking generally are recognised ways of asserting ownership and naming the land. It is a form of claiming or reclaiming in that 'boundaries' are drawn by communities to form an enclosure that, for the most part, encompasses those who subscribe to the same point of view. This is achieved not only through murals but also kerbstone painting and graffiti and is a sign that a commitment has been pledged for or by the people of an area. Paint serves as a reinforcement of that commitment. In Northern Ireland this tradition goes back to the turn of the century. As author Belinda Loftus explains, murals evolved from the loyalist tradition of pictorially representing William III for the Twelfth celebrations along with bunting, banners, marches and pavement painting:
The custom of making gable-end paintings of William III is peculiar to Northern Ireland... The first murals of this kind were those painted by the shipyard worker John McClean in Belfast's Beersbridge Road in 1908, and the house-painter Tommy Henderson in the Shankhill area of the city in 1912.At that time, this was a clear way of defining an area's allegiance to the tradition of loyalism. There were friendly rivalries between areas and Orange Lodges to see whose decorations would be the most impressive during the celebrations. The dates obviously indicate that this was prior to partition. With the subsequent emergence of Northern Ireland as a 'Protestant state', loyalist murals became a means of celebrating the existence of that state (plate 7). They became a declaration of support and a confirmation of identity. One advantage of expressing allegiances through paintings is that they are present all year, not just during the marching season.
When Belinda Loftus was asked on Radio Ulster to explain what she thought had prompted the emergence of murals on a wide scale she gave three reasons: firstly, for the loyalist tradition the function of wall painting was an extension of street decorations or memorial works; secondly, on a more practical level, she equated wall painting with the emergence of widespread advertising - there was a connection between the declarative statements of advertising and those of identity; finally, on an even more pragmatic note, the availability of commercially marketed house paints prompted a new impetus for wall painting - having access to the materials needed made it easier for more people to join in.
In Derry, republican murals and graffiti were first seen on a wide scale during the Blanket Protest of the late 1970s and developed into a more direct political tool during the Hunger Strike of 1981 (plates 27, 34 & 52). The Hunger Strike, in which ten Irish republican prisoners died, was the culmination of a five-year protest by republicans who sought the restoration of political status which had been removed in 1976. During this campaign, the prisoners refused to wear prison uniform or perform prison work. As a result, they were covered only by a blanket or towel and came to be known as the 'blanketmen'. The protest and strike created a new dynamic for republican muralists and, in the same way as it was significant for loyalist murals to declare proprietorship of the state, it became similarly important for republicans to establish their claims and voice their protests.
One positive aspect of murals is their accessibility - they are not enshrined in an art gallery but are instead naturally absorbed into the everyday environment. Brendan McMenamin of Derry's Orchard Gallery chooses to describe them as 'interactive landscapes' rather than murals. This is because of their engagement with the community through representations of their identity, history and culture.
Over time there has been a trend away from blatantly political messages, exhortations or threats. Instead the focus is on artistic representations and symbolism. As one republican muralist commented:
We've obviously become more aware. To begin with, it was like the murals went up, and young people had something to say but nowhere to say it, so it was like, fire something up on a wall. It was really spontaneous and sort of reacting... but now we've become more aware of design and colour and what we want to see.Whereas loyalist murals have tended to concentrate on the same subject matter and time period, i.e. the Glorious Revolution in the late 17th century. republican murals are more contemporary with diverse imagery. Because of the limited number of suitable sites, republican murals are being constantly painted over or updated to highlight new issues that arise. The different manifestations of Free Derry Corner are an example of this.
The proliferation of murals in general has aroused fresh academic interest with a number of new publications examining the subject in terms of social symbolism as well as art. Ian Paisley Jnr has noticed this more enlightened change in perception and comments on it with reference to loyalist art:
For too long visual arts have been underplayed as a vehicle of cultural interpretation and learning. In recent years it is a pleasure to see [people taking] afresh look at murals and the impact they have on the community, instead of [viewing them] as a badge identifying the residents of the area with a certain creed and condition.
In Northern Ireland, and Derry in particular, murals tend to be sited in working class areas. One explanation put forward for this concerns ownership. It has been suggested that people are much more willing to accept paintings on gable ends and garden walls if they don't actually own the property themselves. Consequently, in middle class areas there is a distinct lack of murals. It is much more common for graffiti and wall painting to appear in estates or streets consisting primarily of Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE) houses. It could be that in these areas there is a more acute sense of a shared, communal area.
The NIHE was contacted concerning its policy on murals. The points most forcefully made in reply were the importance of close consultation with the community and ensuring that full co-operation has been achieved before any action is taken. Although the Housing Executive officially owns the houses, it is unwilling to enforce any policies against the wishes of the occupants and accepts it would be virtually impossible to remove a mural if it existed with the consent of those living in the area. This is a crucial point; murals are closely tied in with their surrounding society and any attempt to understand them divorced from the community would be meaningless.
Although the Housing Executive would prefer if there were no sectarian or militaristic images, it is ultimately down to the community whether or not such paintings survive. In one instance in Shantallow, a militaristic republican mural was removed when a group from the local community objected to its contents. They and church representatives negotiated with the originators and it was agreed to replace the mural with one emphasising Irish culture through Celtic design. Although this replacement could still be regarded as political, it was not overtly so and thus more acceptable to local residents. They did not wish their visual voice in that instance to be one that carried connotations of violence.
The NIHE also mentioned its initiative in the Fountain Estate where it helped with the removal of a mural from one location to another during a redevelopment scheme in the early '70s. As local muralist Bobby Jackson Jnr commented, they really didn't have much choice in the matter at that time:
The only reason that one is still there is because my father wouldn't move house at the time they were renovating the old street, he wouldn't move house until they moved the picture to beside where he was going to stay. So they decided they were going to do that and that's how it got up there. Well, it's the last of the old Fountain, it's the only bit you could really say is the Fountain, that wall.Jackson's murals have consistently evoked strong emotions over the years. In one notable instance, Jackson painted over one of his works before it was demolished so that he, and not the redevelopment contractor, controlled the fate of his own art work.
The Department of Environment (DoE) was also contacted about its policies on wall painting, pavement painting and graffiti. Its reply was similar to the Housing Executive, i.e. it does not have any strict guidelines opposing such works. The only policy that is officially pursued is the removal of paintings where the public have requested it. In one instance the DoE painted over loyalist colours on Hawkin Street. A Fountain resident explained why:
There used to be columns and pavement pointing on Hawkin Street, now it is painted out with grey. This is because a Catholic found it offensive... They had to get a contractor to come in from the outside to paint over it because no one from the area would have done it.The Roads Service does not, in general, permit the painting of its pavements or kerbs, but in practice it leaves well alone unless, as in the situation described above, it is pressured into it.
Most television news programmes and documentaries that seek to portray or discuss republican or loyalist paramilitaries place great emphasis on the depiction of murals - primarily because members of such proscribed organisations are banned from appearing on TV. Showing murals also allows the media to present paramilitaries as faceless, and therefore more threatening, forces. The murals chosen for broadcast are often visually intimidating (plates 28, 38 & 50), depicting militarism such as Kalashnikovs, firing squads or masked men in full battledress along with respective colours and flags. In the wake of the Anglo-Irish Downing Street Declaration in December 1993, murals have featured extensively on TV as a kind of visual shorthand for republican and loyalist groupings. The image of faceless 'men of violence' is perpetuated and the connotation of 'talking to a brick wall' is available. The impressions created by this use of murals are of unresponsive, unreasonable and intimidating organisations which is certainly not the original intention of the muralists. Although a small minority of murals may be intended to frighten or warn 'outsiders', most only exist to represent their own community to themselves.
The exploitation of art work for reasons other than those originally intended has angered muralists of both traditions in Derry. The most commonly expressed complaint was the unaccredited use of photographs of their work. Copies were made and distributed as postcards without consultation or any remuneration for the artists. This raises the question of whether mural painting is public art or whether some degree of proprietorship should remain with the originator after completion. Bobby Jackson Jnr was disgusted with the hijacking of his now famous mural of William III crossing the Boyne in 1690 and the Relief of the Great Siege of Derry in 1689, and he hopes that any new material he creates will not be used by others for their own profit. He considered initiating legal proceedings against those who made gains from his previous work without his permission:
If I had my way we would change the paintings, move it all around, do something else, because these boys already have these ones out on cards. I want to do something else. My son says, "You can't, you must stick to the original ones."On the republican side, one mural in particular has been used without permission, once on a postcard and again in a beer advert on TV (plate 22). The ad presents a montage of Irish culture and the mural forms one frame of this with a superimposed dove flying past. The dove changed the original meaning of this work and therefore antagonised the artists. It is interesting to note that this section of the ad was altered by the advertising agency so that instead of Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteers firing into the air, it displayed a Red Hand of Ulster which is, in certain contexts, associated with Protestant loyalism. The bone of contention is not so much the publicity gained but rather the relinquishing of control over the context in which the artists' work appears, such as in publications that alter the meaning of their work with misleading captions. It is frustrating that murals - one of the few ways left for people to voice their views - can also be denied and distorted. Frontline, Culture and Education, a local community arts project, published a pamphlet expressing the concern felt at how republican culture cannot find a voice in a loaded system:Well, this is it you see. I was going to take them boys to court. I had a solicitor and all working on it, he said I was within my rights, he said, "Did he come and ask you if he could do that?" and I said, no, he didn't ask. None of these people asked, they just came and took photographs, went away and had them published all around the shops.
Look at the culture of the Eskimo, the African, or our own culture. Each culture reflects a particular relationship to the land; it's for that reason that colonisers have always destroyed the culture of the people they have enslaved. By criminalising our language and our customs, they tried to erase our history, who we are, and imposed their culture, their explanation of the world.It may have made the media more comfortable in their portrayal of the conflict in Northern Ireland to use the notion of equal activity on either side. Consequently, Frontline felt that its social agenda were ignored through this misrepresentation.
On one occasion, a Bogside muralist talked on Radio Ulster about a circus mural that was situated at the rear of the old Rossville flats. He said that it didn't reflect the community at all:
There were some local muralists that worked on the circus mural in Rossville Street in the early '80s, they deny it now. The opinion of the community was disparaging - it was irrelevant to them. They felt absolutely no connection with it - it has to involve you or it just doesn't mean anything.In the same radio interview, film-maker Margo Harkin commented on the '...invalidity of entering another community and painting on their walls for them.'
In 1981, a newspaper reported on the phenomena of murals and graffiti in an article entitled 'The walls say it all in this grim divided city'. Twelve years later, the Belfast Telegraph reported that '...armed guards may have been necessary if anyone was seeking to remove existing murals.'
The Democratic Unionist Party [DUP] local government candidate... claimed the majority of local residents were in favour of the roadside mural. Mr McNerlin said that any attempt to remove murals would probably be resisted in all areas. "They will have to go into loyalist areas with an armed guard. I can't see them going up the Falls Road either."This demonstrates the depth of support that murals can enlist. Politicians are willing to speak out in commendation or condemnation of them. This indicates that they are more than simple street decoration and proves that they have deep roots within the community on both sides. The issue of their right to exist as well as their alleged infringement on the sensibilities of opposite communities is newsworthy. The front page headline of the Daily Mirror in December 1993 was a bold declaration that The Writing's On The Wall: the accompanying photo showed the word Peace daubed on a wall along with the caption:
The walls that have carried messages of hate for 25 years were daubed with a new slogan - PEACE.Optimistically, the paper's report reproduces an image on a wall to indicate its belief that the same people writing messages of hate have had a change of heart. In the aftermath of the IRA cease-fire called on 31 August '94, the Daily Mirror chose to repeat the headline The Writing's On The Wall in the following day's edition.
Murals are akin to a form of propaganda in themselves. This is
how they have been used for political purposes in other countries
such as Guatemala, Mexico, Spain, Cuba and Russia. In Northern
Ireland, they are a community's declaration to itself and proclamation
to others entering the area. They are fragile in that they are
susceptible to the natural elements of rain, frost, wind and light.
Equally, murals are vulnerable to vandalism or are at the mercy
of a disapproving community, factors that can bring the already
transitory existence of a painting to a premature end. Most murals
will last roughly six months without care; beyond this they rely
on the continued concern of the community and the artists for
their upkeep.
The social and political framework of the time dictates the style and messages of murals on both sides. Loyalists consider their history and heritage as the mainstays of their ideology therefore their murals confirm their status and right to reside in Northern Ireland. This is displayed through the epic imagery of war - such as King William III on his horse at the Battle of the Boyne (plate 6)- and through the use of militaristic coats of arms, Union flags and various representations of the Red Hand of Ulster. On the republican side, murals have proved to be an ideal mode of expression within the confines of a society where the majority dictates the dominant political ideology. An example would be the paintings inspired by the Hunger Strikes that were born out of a community's need for a visual form of protest. Murals enable a minority opinion to be expressed without being subject to the same amount of censorship as the spoken word. In republican and nationalist areas they subsequently developed into mechanisms for propaganda and as a means of countering the weight of unionist political dominance.
While most murals represent the community they are situated in, they also engender meanings for people outside the area. The works have limited intrinsic meaning in themselves; it is rather what perceptions and preconceptions the viewer brings to them. A mural considered militaristic is only a mimetic portrayal of objects such as guns. However, when such objects are placed within the context of a divided society, the depiction becomes a signifier of armed confrontation and a whole train of other events throughout history.
Combined with symbols, slogans and its geographical location, the image then lends itself to a specific ideology.
Despite the wide variety of symbols and representations that are
available, murals tend to contain the same stock images. These
are the same all over Northern Ireland. Quantity and quality vary,
but the common themes remain. Therefore, it is obviously not a
preoccupation of scattered individuals but the manifestation of
group feelings. Messages on the walls give clues to the 'word
on the streets', that is, the grass-roots consensus.
THE FOUNTAIN
| Plate I | Fountain Estate Flats. King William III crossing the Boyne and the Relief of Deify. Painted by Bobby Jackson Snr in the 1940s and moved to this location in the 1970s. Demolished in 1993 and replaced by an updated version in 1995.[1] |
| Plates 2 & 3 | Central Fountain. New version of Jackson's famous original Fountain mural unveiled on 11 August 1995. |
| Plate 4 | Fountain Youth Club, 1994. Red Hand of Ulster with names of 'The Brave Thirteen' who were the Apprentice Boys responsible for the closing of the Gates of Derry against King James II in 1688 which was the symbolic beginning of the Great Siege.[6] |
| Plate 5 | Fountain Creche, 1992. Cartoon of the Pope 'alleging' his support for Ulster. [5] |
| Plate 6 | Wapping Lane, 1990. King William Ill at the Boyne by David Jackson. [6] |
| Plate 7 | Fountain Youth Club, 1993. Customised coat of arms declaring allegiance to the Northern Ireland state with the crests of the six constituent counties. [5] |
| Plate 8 | Fountain Youth Club, 1992. A basic Red Hand of Ulster with some faded orange lilies and red roses. |
| Plate 9 | Fountain Youth Club, 1992. Shield depicting loyalist paramilitary emblems i.e. Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF), Loyalist Prisoners' Association (LPA), Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and Ulster Defence Force (UDF).[5] |
| Plate 10 | Fountain Youth Club, 1993. Loyalist slogan on Union flags with Red Hands and Londonderry coat of arms.[5] |
FREE DERRY CORNER
| Plate 11 | The famous wall around the mid-1970s without its modern side support structures.[9] |
| Plates 12 & 13 | Examples from 1995 of the ongoing use of the wall as a focal point for contemporary issues e.g. the campaigns to disband the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and to free all the prisoners as represented by the green Saoirse (freedom) ribbon. |
| Plate 14 | A temporary transformation in 1994 by artist Colin Darke who painted the wall a socialist-related red and yellow to engender dialogue about its origins and current role in the community. [3] |
| Plate 15 | An adaptation (by Robert Ballagh) of a famous Falklands War image painted in 1994 by Brian Gormley. [3] |
| Plate 16 | Sinn Fein election board from 1993 by Inside Out. [3] |
| Plate 17 | The 10th anniversary of Derry Hunger Strikers Patsy O'Hara and Michael Devine in 1991 by Inside Out. [3] |
| Plate 18 | AIDS awareness heightened by the death of Derryman Patrick Doherty in 1990 by Inside Out. [3] |
| Plate 19 | Boards in support of International Women's Day in March 1991 by Derry Sinn Fein Women's Department in collaboration with Patricia Hegarty. [3] |
| Plate 20 | Representations of John Hume MP, MEP, Cardinal Daly and former prime minister of the Irish Republic, Charles Haughey, carrying obscure images of (presumably) capitalism (EEC flag, dollar sign and a Sky TV dish!). Above is a British army helicopter and alongside is a quotation from the bible written over the faint outline of a Hunger Striker. Christmas 1990 by Inside Out.[1] |
CITYSIDE
| Plate 21 | Rossville Street high flats, 1985. A representative variety of political and military imagery widely used in republican wall paintings including a cartoon of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Painted by Bogside Republican Youth. [9] |
| Plate 22 | Chamberlain Street, 1985. On the left, Celtic warrior imagery illustrates a poem in Irish by Patrick Pearse, Mise Éire (I am Ireland). On the right, IRA volunteers fire a volley of shots in salute by Bogside Republican Youth.[2] |
| Plate 23 | Drumleck Drive, Shantallow, 1987. The lark of the Spirit of Freedom pays tribute to Bobby Sands as a revered symbol of Ireland's desire to be united and free. Also present are shields of Ireland's four provinces, Ulster, Munster, Leinster and Connacht. |
| Plate 24 | Drumleck Drive, Shantallow, 1988. A traditional Phoenix supporting the Irish tricolour and Sunburst flags. The Sunburst flag was designed in 1912 by Irish revolutionary Countess Markievicz who founded Fianna Éireann. According to the Fianna handbook it symbolises '...the passing of the long night of sadness and the dawning of a new era of hope in Ireland.' |
| Plate 25 | Glenfada Park, Rossville Street, 1983. Stephen McConomy was an 11-year old killed by a plastic bullet fired by the security forces. [3] |
| Plate 26 | Westland Street, 1987. This site, the Bookie's Wall, has become famous locally for the strength and diversity of images used over the years to convey the mood of the people. Here, Hunger Striker Bobby Sands is shown alongside international revolutionary Che Guevara with Easter Rising and Russian Revolution flags to show solidarity of purpose by Inside Out.[2] |
| Plate 27 | Westland Street, 1981. A half-completed salute to the fallen Hunger Strikers.[9] |
| Plate 28 | Westland Street, 1985. Symbolic of the republican movement' s belief that everyone has a part to play in the struggle for freedom, and an assertion that Tiocfaidh ár lá (our day will come). [3] |
| Plate 29 | Westland Street, 1994. Freedom for political prisoners became a central issue in 1995 and this is dramatically captured here. Painted by Inside Out.[6] |
| Plate 30 | Lisfannon Park/Rossville Street, 1994. The 25th anniversary of the Battle of the Bogside with the One Struggle symbol amid the flames of rebirth by Inside Out. |
| Plate 31 | Lisfannon Park/Rossville Street, 1994. Probably the most famous image of the Battle of the Bogside based on a photograph from the period. Behind the young boy in the gas mask with the petrol bomb can be seen the RUC laying siege to the (now demolished) high-rise Rossville flats. Atop the flats are the defenders of the Bogside with an Irish tricolour flag by Tom Kelly, Kevin Hasson, Willie Kelly and friends. [3] |
| Plate 32 | Westland Street, 1992. The fourteen Civil Rights marchers murdered on Sunday, 30 January 1972 by the Parachute regiment of the British army. This montage was erected on the 20th anniversary by the Bloody Sunday Initiative which later became the Pat Finucane Centre. |
| Plate 33 | Kells Walk, Rossville Street, 1993. An example of republican tongue-in-cheek humour by 'borrowing' a famous artistic image created by Edvard Munch and customising it as a Sinn Féin election board.[1] |
| Plate 34 | Central Drive, Creggan, 1981. A board illustrating various stages of the republican struggle i.e. arrest, interrogation, sentencing and the Blanket Protest.[4] |
| Plate 35 | Central Drive, Creggan, 1995. Roll of honour of fallen comrades of Derry Brigade IRA with the words Óglaigh na hÉireann (Irish Volunteers) and oak leaves by Inside Out. |
| Plate 36 | Central Drive, Creggan, 1994. Poetic message in Irish with the words The healer's hand is healing her now suggesting, with the image, that a United Ireland is coming soon.[7] |
| Plate 37 | Lecky Road, 1995. A self-explanatory call for the RUC to be disbanded by Inside Out. |
| Plate 38 | Foyle Road, 1995. This is an unusually forceful reminder to the opposing military forces that the republican cause will win through by Inside Out. |
| Plate 39 | Racecourse Road, Shantallow, 1995. Originally displayed at Conway Mill in Belfast, these boards contain the lark and barbed wire symbols closely associated with Hunger Striker Bobby Sands. The message is clearly defined - all sides must cease violence for peace to succeed. |
| Plates 40 & 41 | Meenan Square, 1993. Community murals depicting the past and the present using a variety of recreational images.[3] |
| Plate 42 | Lecky Road/Meenan Square, 1993. Community effort inspired by local children representing their views on the nearby army watchtower and hopes for a bright future. [3] |
| Plate 43 | Meenan Square, 1993. Children at play around the Bloody Sunday memorial plinth. Painted by Dove House Community Resource Centre. [3] |
| Plate 44 | Rossville Street/William Street, 1989. The Auld Days, painted by Tom Kelly and others, reproduces the old Rossville Street area from the 1950s.[8] |
| Plate 45 | Magazine Street, 1993. The Doire-Managua mural is a complex montage of cross-cultural experiences painted in collaboration with Nicaraguan muralists by Inside Out. [3] |
| Plate 46 | Alexandra Place, Foyle Road, 1993. A highly striking collection of everyday images used primarily to brighten up the area with which they are associated by Tom Kelly. [3] |
WATERSIDE
| Plate 47 | Gobnaseale, c. 1991. A reproduction of the old Top of the Hill area of Gobnascale in the 1950s by Tom Kelly. [3] |
| Plate 48 | Gobnascale, c.1991. A white stallion with stone tower, dwelling and dolmen images surrounded by a Celtic border, all used to visually represent one version of the area's name by Tom Kelly. [3] |
| Plate 49 | Trench Road, Waterside, c. 1989. Phoenix with Irish tricolour and version of a Sunburst flag. [9] |
| Plate 50 | Gobnascale, c.1985. IRA volunteer fires a salute. [3] |
| Plate 51 | Gobnascale, 1991. Seventy-fifth anniversary of the Easter Rising with portrait of James Connolly. [3] |
| Plate 52 | Gobnascale, 1981. One of a series of similar boards in the area erected to commemorate the Hunger Strikers, in this instance Derryman Patsy O'Hara. [3] |
| Plate 53 | Gobnascale, c.1985. An early expression of republican defiance and intent Tiochfaidh ar la [sic] (our day will come). [3] |
| Plate 54 | Bond's Street, 1995. Traditional King William III depiction at the Boyne. |
| Plate 55 | Bond's Street, 1995. Londonderry coat of arms with Union flags, cannon balls and purple siege flags. |
| Plate 56 | Bond's Street, 1995. Similar imagery to plate 9 along with UDA emblem and Quis Separabit (who will separate us?). |
| Plate 57 | Lincoln Courts, Kilfennan, c. 1991. Stock loyalist imagery of Union and Ulster flags and UDA emblem. |
| Plate 58 | Stevenson Park, Tullyally, c.1991. UDA emblem, King William III and Ulster and Union flags.[9] |
KEY:
All photographs by Guildhall Press except:
[1] Arlene Wege
[2] Jim Cunningham
[3] Séan Semple/Camerawork Darkrooms
[4] Bill Rolston
[5] Edel O'Doherty
[6] Jim Hughes
[7] Hugh Gallagher
[8] Tom Kelly
[9] Orchard Gallery
SOURCES
Taped Interviews
Bogside Muralists
Fountain Residents
Jackson, Robert Jnr, muralist
Kelly, Tom, muralist
MeMenamin, Brendan, Orchard Gallery, Derry
Periodicals and Pamphlets
Jarman, Neil, 'Troubled Images
Paisley, Ian Jnr, Echoes 1993
McCann, May, 'Political Art', Linenhall Review (quarterly)
Summer 1993, Vol. 10, No. 1
Newspapers
Belfast Telegraph
Daily Mirror
Derry Journal
Irish Times
Londonderry Sentinel
Loftus, B., Mirrors - William III and Mother Ireland,
Picture Press, Newcastle, County Down, 1990.
Political Guide to Derry (2nd edition), Pat Finucane Centre, Derry, 1993.
Rolston, B., Drawing Support - Murals in the North of Ireland, Beyond the Pale Publications, Belfast, 1992.
CAIN
contains information and source material on the conflict
and politics in Northern Ireland. CAIN is based within Ulster University. |
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