Yo Ho Ho Ho

Pirate Santa flag opposite the Con Club on the Newtownards Road, Belfast.

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Copyright © 2021 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Builders At Work

This Nathan Bowen (ig | web store) piece is on the hoarding on the west side of North Street (in front of the car-park). There is no actual construction taking place – the area has been in decline since the fire in the arcade in 2004 (see below and Condensed Community Confidence and Who Burnt Us Out?) and the Tribeca renovation has proven controversial.

Previously by Bowen: Covid-Era Canvasses

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Cobra Kai

Cobra Kai is the dojo of Johnny Lawrence (pictured above) who served as the villian of The Karate Kid back in 1984 (“Sweep the leg!”); the modern YouTube/Netflix series Cobra Kai is more sympathetic and more complicated – season 4 will be released on December 31st. The mural is by TOAR and NOYS in the Bloomfield Avenue alley behind the old Vault.

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We’re All Mad Here

This mural of characters from Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland – including the Mad Hatter, shown above – was painted back in August (or late July) with about twenty feet of purple-painted wall to the right but there has been no advance made on it since then. Also included are the White Rabbit (or possibly the March Hare), the Cheshire Cat – speaker of our title quote – and Alice herself.

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Death

Chuck Schuldiner was the founder, vocalist, and guitarist of the metal band Death – one of the first “death metal” bands – from 1983 until his death at 34 from a brain tumour, twenty years ago today (WP). The mural in his honour is in the alley off Bloomfield Avenue, behind the former Vault HQ; it reproduces a Getty image of Schuldiner from 1995 holding a BC Rich Ignitor guitar, now out of production. Please leave a comment if you can decipher the artist’s sig.

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Copyright © 2021 Extramural Activity
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Act Now

“Act now” on the climate crisis – the hands “evoke action” in preserving the flowers, butterflies, and bees (Irish News). The work by Danni Simpson (web | ig) is on the Montrose Street side of the Skainos Centre in east Belfast. The mural was unveiled by Rosalind Skillen, a podcaster and writer (e.g. BBC) on climate from east Belfast. Funding was provided by the Climate Coalition (Friends Of The Earth).

See also: Life Preserver

See previously in east Belfast: emic’s ‘twisted hands’ mural which was further along the Newtownards Road when the Vault artists were in the old Ulster Bank building – see 35.

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Are You Sitting Comfortably?

JJB Sports is still closed (since 2012) and the Weatherspoons never materialised, so Leo Boyd’s (web | ig | Fb) art on the hoarding has expanded into a triptych with pieces on either side of No Signal. In June he added the piece on the right (shown below), and now on the left (shown above, with signature) is one in a series called “Are You Sitting Comfortably?” The Vault’s Christmas market is on this weekend at HQ on the Newtownards Road – tickets can be booked on Fb.

Previously by Leo on Extramural Activity.

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For The Love Of Skulls

Full title: “For the love of skulls what have I done” by Matthew Knight (ig) in Kent Street, Belfast, for HTN2021.

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Arooooo

Work by Friz (web | tw | ig) in Union Street, Belfast, for HTN2021.

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The Professional

Two views of Glen Molloy’s (ig | Fb) homage to the 1994 film Leon: The Professional, painted for HTN21 in Union Street, Belfast.

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