painted wall

Fair Head

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Glentaisie Drive – site of this mural by Friz (web) – is named for Glentaisie, the glen – one of the nine Glens Of Antrim, at the foot of which lies Ballycastle – and Glentaisie is named for Taise Taobhgheal (Taise the bright-cheeked), daughter of King Donn of Rathlin island, renowned for her beauty, and who lived in the glen with her husband Congal, who had to kill the Norwegian king Nabghdon to prevent her being carried off (Archaeology Ireland). Or so they say. She also inspired the name “Fair Head” for the local cliffs. Or so they say.

In later years (1565), Sorley Boy MacDonnell was taken prisoner by the O’Neill’s after a battle in Glentaisie (WP).

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Life Preserver

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If the ice melts, we’re all in the drink – an environmental message from Spacer (Shane Sutton tw) for Friends Of The Earth (NI) (ig | tw) in High Street, Belfast.

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Quicker Than The Human Eye

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A blur of a hurler (or camóg) by Dublin artist Aches (web) in Ballycastle, where the local GAA club is Mac Uilín/MacQuillan’s (web).

Previously by Aches in Belfast: Disruption | A Closer Look | Headaches

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Women Workers Of The World Unite

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A tribute to the impact women have on industry in Cubist style from French, Dublin-based, artist Claire Prouvost (web | ig | tw) outside Transport House in Belfast (around the corner from Workers Of The World Unite).

You can see video of the artist at work on the piece for HTN on ig.

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Feıs Na nGleann

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Feıs Na nGleann is an annual festival of Irish language, arts, and crafts, begun in Glenariffe in 1904. The website has not been updated since 2019, presumably due to COVID putting a stop to activity.

The “F” makes reference to the local “Irish (Peasant) Home Industries“, while the “E” shows the harebell (bluebell) in flower. The “I” might be St Brigid as an oak or a reference to Princess Taisie/Taobhgheal of Rathlin.

Laura Nelson of Szu Szu Signs (ig).

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The Storyteller

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Local storyteller Hugh Dillon in Castle Street, Ballycastle, by JMK (Jonny McKerr). The original photograph, of Dillon in Leyland Road, Ballycastle, in 1956 and is available at Dúchas.

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Sorley Boy

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Somhaırle Buí Mac Domhnaıll (Gaeılge) / Somhaırle Buıdhe Mac Domhnaıll (Gàıdhlıg) / Sorley Boy MacDonnell (English) was so-called (Buí/Buıdhe) because of his “yellow” hair. Although his family was from the islands, he was born just outside Ballycastle in 1505 and is known for establishing the Mac Donnells in Antrim and for frustrating the plantation (WP | Tudor & Stuart Perspectives).

The mural was painted by Oliver McParland (web) in North Street, Ballycastle.

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From The Plough To The Stars

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“A free Ireland will control its own destiny from the plough to the stars.” So James Connolly is said to have explained the significance of “the plough in the stars” (Ursa Major) as a symbol of Irish revolutionary socialism. (Though no source is given for the remark. See the Paddy Duffy Collection for more.)

Connolly and Seamus Costello, heroes of the IRSP (web) are painted on James Connolly house in Chamberlain Street, Derry, which is also home to Teach Na Fáılte, the Republican Socialist Ex-Prisoners group.

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Girl With Calf

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The inspiration for this piece is the Ould Lammas Fair, one of Ireland’s oldest and, some claim, biggest festivals, which is held in Ballycastle on the last Monday and Tuesday of August (Irish Culture & Customs). The piece, by emic (web), is in Castle Street which was perhaps the location of the market within the mediaeval town walls.

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Brains, More Brains!

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“Gums and tongue” is the name of a zine by London artist The Real Dill (ig), famous for his fabulous cranial interiors. This is his piece for HTN21 in Union Street.

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