Beıdh Bua Agaınn Go Fóıll

The Irish tricolour flies outside Raymond McCreesh House – his birthplace – at Maryville, Camlough.

“Keep on marching, don’t give up – Raymond McCreesh 1957-81. Died after 61 days hunger-strike, H-Block Long Kesh 1981.” The phrase was spoken at the end of a visit with Jim Gibney.

“Beıdh bua agaınn go fóıll” [victory will be ours yet].

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01546 X05305

Prison First, Then President

2013-07-23 Mandela+

“”In my country we go to prison first and then become President” – Madiba, Nelson Mandela, freedom lover, friend of Ireland.”

Above is a new mural on Northumberland Street (not on Divis Street’s international wall) in honour of the ailing Nelson Mandela’s 95th birthday, on July 18th. Painted by Lucas Quigley (you can see a signature and a telephone number in the lower right), the mural features Mandela, the flags of Ireland and South Africa, and the Sinn Féin logo (in contrast with the dissident flyers further up to the left, shown on 2013-07-17). Detail below. The photo reproduced is probably this Getty image.

2013-07-23 MandelaClose+

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01192 X01193

Daffodil Days

2013-07-29 SEA UDU+

Shamrock, thistle, and rose are shown in this South East Antrim Ulster Defence Union mural but the daffodil is not, even though the Welsh “Red Dragon” is included alongside the Scottish Saltire, the flag of Northern Ireland, and Queen Elizabeth II’s royal standard.

The Ulster Defence Union was a loyalist organization founded to fight against Home Rule, launched on 17 March 1893. The name is now used by the post-ceasefire UDA (beginning in 2007: Newsletter | Remembrance Day Statement at CAIN).

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01208 banner of arms quis separabit st andrew’s cross carrickfergus ireland irish scotland england enlgish

The Red Army

2013-07-21 RedArmyWide+

The Red Army are the supporters of Cliftonville football team which this past (2012-2013) season won both the Irish League Cup and the League Championship. The mural on the right had side, detailed below, looks in such good condition because it was touched up on July 17th —in time for that night’s Champions League match against Celtic — after being vandalized on the 16th.

There is a good summary of Cliftonville history (including their present-day successes), as well as a picture of the “Let’s All Do The Huddle” mural painted for the occasion of the Celtic visit, at the blog Four-Four-Two.

2013-07-21 RedArmy+

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01189 X01188 2013 champions reds social athletic club ireland’s oldest 1879

The Sun Will Make You Blind

2013-07-08 TheSun+

Members of local graffit artist crew TMN (whose names are listed in the lower left) have collaborated on this new anti-capitalist mural in College Court in the city centre, attacking The Sun (newspaper) and the recently deceased former Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, who is shown here with glowing eyes: “The Sun will make you blind life people say … cost you your sight as well as 30p a day.”

In progress image.

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Extramural Activity
X01179 the most nasty jest nota reck bore rase aken kanuz anco ether dex

Infant In The Bulb Of A Plant

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Here is the central portion of the east wall of Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry frescoes in the Detroit Institute of Arts. Rivera’s wife, Frida Kahlo, had a miscarriage during their time in Detroit and the infant in the image is a tribute to that loss.

Rivera, a communist, was invited to paint the frescoes by Edsel Ford, of the Ford motor company. He painted four walls of a great hall in 1932-1933, celebrating industrial and medical progress while also portraying its deadly uses, and mixing Aztec, Mexican and Christian imagery. The east wall is the first in viewing order, just as in church liturgies.

See also: Building The Model B (South) | Life & Death (West) | The Assembly Line (North)

Below is an (unaccredited) image of Rivera painting the outline (the “cartoon”) for this section of the wall, in 1932.

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Cathal Woods
X05976

RiveraEastOutline

Building The Model B

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Today we feature the main panel of the South wall of the Diego Rivera Detroit Industry frescoes in the Detroit Institute of Arts, which shows the construction of an automobile (probably the Model B – we will see the V-8 engine being produced on the north wall) at Ford’s River Rouge plant in Dearborn. The wide shot is above and more detailed shots of the lower left, the right third, and the lower central portion follow.

Here is a video of the Rouge plant in 1938 and 1939 …

 

See also: Infant In The Bulb Of A Plant (East) | Life & Death (West) | The Assembly Line (North)

Here is the right third – in the bottom right corner (above the strip with panels charting a day in the life of workers) can be seen Edsel Ford, of Ford Motors, and William Valentiner, director of the Detroit Institute of Arts at the time Rivera painted the frescoes (1932-1933).

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

The lower left portion …

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Below are three shots of the lower central section, of increasing proximity to the work; the third demonstrates the amazing level of detail of the frescoes.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Cathal Woods
X05987 X05983 X05984 X05985 X05986 X05982

The Assembly Line

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

As can be seen from the final image below (showing the whole of the main panel), a bright sunlight was streaming through the glass ceiling on the day of our visit to Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry frescoes in the Detroit Institute of Arts, making many of our images of the north wall unusable and degrading the quality of the few included here. They nonetheless show the stunning level of detail Rivera went to despite the massive size of the work. These are all of the main panel, the bottom third of which shows construction of the eight-cylinder engine for the Model B (probably).

For more information, see also: Infant In The Bulb Of A Plant (East) | Building The Model B (South) | Life & Death (West)

Top centre …

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Bottom centre …

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Bottom left …

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Shot of the main panel on the north wall …

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Cathal Woods
X05980 X05977 X05978 X05979 X05981

Life & Death

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Above is a striking panel from the west wall of the Diego Rivera ‘Detroit Industry’ hall in the Detroit Institute of Arts. One of Rivera’s main themes was the dual use of technology, for both good and bad, and here he represents aviation both commercial and military. The bottom panel shows worldwide shipping and the extraction of natural resources by developed countries (on the right, you can see rubber trees being tapped).

See also: Infant In The Bulb Of A Plant (East) | Building The Model B (South) | The Assembly Line (North)

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Cathal Woods
X05988

Unwelcome To Ardoyne

2013-06-19 PSNINotWelcome+

Painted signage at the north end of Berwick Road/Paráıd An Ardghleanna in Ardoyne/Ard Eoın (next to the Maıréad Farrell piece featured previously): “P.S.N.I. not welcome in Ardoyne”.

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01153 police service northern ireland