Northern Irish murals
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Northern Irish murals have become symbols of Northern Ireland, depicting the province's past and present divisions.
Northern Ireland contains arguably the most famous political murals. Almost 2,000 murals have been documented in Northern Ireland since the 1970s. The murals more often than not represent one side's political point of view.
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[edit] History
Almost all of the Northern Ireland murals promote either republican or loyalist political beliefs, often glorifying paramilitary groups such as the Provisional Irish Republican Army and the Ulster Volunteer Force, while others commemorate people who have lost their lives in paramilitary or military attacks.
The most famous of the murals in Northern Ireland may well be Free Derry Corner, where the slogan "You Are Now Entering Free Derry" was painted in 1969, shortly after the Battle of the Bogside. However, some do not consider Free Derry Corner to be a true mural as it is only words and not images. Free Derry Corner has been used as a model for other murals in Northern Ireland, including the "You Are Now Entering Loyalist Sandy Row" mural in Belfast, which was a response to the republican message of Free Derry Corner, and the "You Are Now Entering Derry Journal Country" mural, which is an advertisement for a Derry publication.
Not all murals in Northern Ireland are political or religious in nature, with some commemorating events such as the Great Irish Famine (1845-1849), and other moments in Irish history. Many portray events from Irish mythology, though images from Irish myths are often incorporated into political murals. A few murals avoid the subject of Ireland altogether, instead focusing on such neutral subjects as litter prevention and the C. S. Lewis novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe[1]. Murals representing peace and tolerance are becoming increasingly popular with school groups who have children either design or actually paint murals in areas around their schools. Additionally with many paramilitaries now involved in community work there has been a move to decommission many of the hard-edged murals across Northern Ireland. Some warlike murals have been replaced with iconic figures from the area, for example George Best and James Joseph Magennis.[1] This change was further highlighted in 2007, when two mural artists were invited to Washington, D.C. for the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival. The two artists have been invited to recreate murals on Washington Mall.[2]
Derry mural 3.jpg
A mural depicting Bernadette Devlin McAliskey. |
BestCregaghEstateMural.jpg
A mural in a loyalist area dedicated to George Best. |
George Best mural.jpg
A mural in a republican area dedicated to George Best. |
Titanic Mural Belfast.jpg
A mural dedicated to the sinking of RMS Titanic. |
Bobby sands mural in belfast320.jpg
A mural dedicated to Bobby Sands. |
Civil Rights Mural.jpg
A mural depicting the civil rights movement. |
Derry mural.jpg
Free Derry mural. |
Loyalist political mural.jpg
Loyalist mural depicting republican killings. |
NI murals Freedom Corner.jpg
Loyalist 'Freedom Corner' mural. |
NI murals NI football.jpg
Northern Ireland football mural. |
James Magennis mral.JPG
Mural dedicated to James Joseph Magennis in east Belfast. |
NI murals Rights.jpg
Mural in east Belfast questioning the value of rights of the victims of Republican attacks. |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ BBC website story on the softening of some murals in loyalist areas of Belfast
- ^ Painting a new image of NI, BBC News
[edit] External links
- Quality photographs of Belfast murals
- Political Wall Murals in Northern Ireland
- Troubles Gallery a BBC website of murals in Northern Ireland.
- A collection of loyalist murals in Northern Ireland
- A collection of republican murals in Northern Ireland
- Collection of Republican Murals and Monuments
- Collection of Loyalist Murals
- Flickr group: Northern Ireland political murals
- Ireland mural reviews from residents and tourists
[edit] Further reading
- Oona Woods (1995). Seeing is Believing? Murals in Derry. Guildhall: Printing Press. ISBN 0-946451-31-1. eu:Ipar Irlandako muralak
ko:북 아일랜드 거리벽화
