Here’s the part of the Stroud Street mural (mentioned a few days ago in Just The Ticket) that incorporates the street-light into the mural.
Ed Reynolds is the artist. The mural was commissioned by the Belfast City Council, in consultation with the Sandy Row Community Forum and the Residents’ Association
There are a few seconds of footage of children swinging on a light pole at the 1:25 mark of this youtube video
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00585
This is the new Michael Conlan mural, on Violet Street, painted by Marty Lyons. It is notable for how quickly it went up (Conlon (and Barnes) won medals on August 11th), for the sponsorship (by the Beehive and McPeakes), and for the artists’ signatures (below the McPeakes label – click on the image to enlarge).
Boxing is organized on an all-island basis (WP), though at the Olympics boxers can choose to fight for either Ireland or GBNI.
At London 2012, Ireland won four medals in boxing. Conlan, Barnes, Katie Taylor (gold) and John Joe Nevin (silver).
(P.S. The Nevins are travellers (WP) and Mr and Mrs Nevin could not find an establishment in Mullingar where they could watch the fight – they had to go out of town to a pub where they weren’t known. )
Here’s a picture of the mural in progress. (Replaces the Celtic mural.)
Other Olympians: In London, a mural of Usain Bolt. In the U.S., a mural was painted of gymnastic champion Gabby Douglas. Irish/Northern Irish Olympians in Belfast. Anti-corporate Olympics mural.
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00584 michael conlon, the beehive, mcpeakes, XXX olympiad london 2012, violet street
Part of the long, multi-panel mural in Stroud St by Ed Reynolds – with help from the person pictured, William McKee Strong. For the whole thing, see Stroud St Entire.
The parking-ticket machine is real.
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00583
“Suicide Awareness. It’s always too early to quit, live life to the full. A helping hand is near. Love your life, love your community” with the numbers for Lifeline and Suicide Awareness. By Divis Youth Project.
Albert Street, west Belfast.
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Extramural Activity
X05259
“Get the real story – local history from local people – take a black taxi tour – West Belfast Taxi Association – 40 years unbroken service”. The tours of “local” history are of course aimed at non-locals as part of the ‘dark tourism’ or ‘Troubles tourism’ boom.
Here is the Getty Images photo of British Army soldiers on the Falls Road in 1969, on which the mural is based.
International Wall, west Belfast.
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00808
The new WARN (West Against Racism Network) mural on the international wall, in the style of Punch and other magazines’ portrayal of the Irish.
On the left, an Irish family in front of a window reading “No Irish need apply” is stereotyped as jagged-toothed, shillelagh-wielding hunch-backs in the style of Punch and other magazines’ portrayal of the Irish. The Punch portrayal is described, and Punch named explicitly, in the song ‘Do Me Justice’ a.k.a. ‘Here I Am From Donegal’. (Lyrics | audio: Frank Harte (full song) | Len Graham (clip).) They also carry a copy of “The Big Begorra” – a play on The Big Issue, a newspaper published on behalf of, and sold by, homeless people. “We’re projections of 19th century anti-Irish prejudice—we’ve never actually existed.”
The treatment of the Irish is used as an anology for the the Roma (WP): “Whereas I, ethnoid steriotypus their creator, have existed since time immemorial. My latest target—the Roma! I hope you’ll swallow all the lies I concoct.”
“Hey—what was the outcome of the harassment of the Roma newspaper sellers?” “The evening edition collapsed!” – this is a reference to the Belfast Telegraph‘s decision to cease printing an evening edition.
This mural does NOT contain a reference to the ‘Free Marian Price’ (WP | FB) campaign, which all of the other murals on the international wall currently (summer 2012) do. In the lower right is the signature of political cartoonist Ian Knox, a.k.a. Blotski (WP) – Marty Lyons and a Short Strand artist were also involved – and date (9 August, 2012 – for Féile 2012 (pictures of the launch).
(Replaces a black-and-red ‘Oppose Racism‘ mural, which replaced the Liam MacCarthy Cup mural.)
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00581 No Irish need apply; we’re projections of 19th century anti-Irish prejudice—we’ve never actually existed;west against racism network’ big begorra issue; whereas I ethnoid steriotypus their creator, have existed since time immemorial; my latest target—the Roma!; I hope you’ll swallow all the lies I concoct; Hey—what was the outcome of the harassment of the Roma newspaper sellers?’ the evening edition collapsed!
Maps | Visual Histories | Collections: Peter Moloney | Paddy Duffy | Seosamh Mac Coılle
Thank you for visiting! Extramural Activity is …
(1) A map/database of the wall-paintings in Northern Ireland/north-east Ireland, especially Belfast and Derry. There is one map showing all the wall-paintings ever, and another showing only those that are currently visible in Belfast.
(2) A set of “Visual Histories“, that is, pages describing and illustrating the history, trends, and common motifs in muraling and street art, e.g. Cú Chulaınn murals, the Bobby Jackson murals, Free Derry Corner, the International Wall, murals with Iron Maiden’s Eddie The Trooper, etc., etc.
The mural-image collections of the following photographers are curated by Extramural Activity:
The Seosamh Mac Coılle collection is housed at this site. This collection is searchable using the tools in the side-bar on the right. You can also scroll through the entries below.
The maps and Visual Histories draw on all of the available collections of images of murals.
If you want a feed of the latest art, “follow” the Seosamh Mac Coılle collection and the Paddy Duffy collection, using the links in the side-bar of each site — a new entry is added to one of those two collections (almost) every day. A vintage image is added to the Peter Moloney collection (almost) every day.
“Copyright is for losers © TM – Banksy”. A “Banksy”, about Banksy, in Bundoran.
The statement on the left appears on the printer’s page inside the cover of Wall And Piece, but is immediately followed by “Against his better judgment, Banksy has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 …”!
For Banksy, see banksy.co.uk, WP.
Related: (the real) Banksy’s Olympics works, Hackney Welcomes the Olympics and Going For Mould.
See also: Belfast Banksy
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00579
“What if we all prayed?” The toll of the recession in Fivemiletown, Co. Fermanagh, is not only driving people to prayer, but driving people to drive people to prayer.
Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00580
This is a new mural in support of the Basque country and in particular political prisoners, unveiled today as part of Féıle 202 in Beechmount, west Belfast. The designs to the left and the right are described in a comment below – thanks BasqueMurals.
Previous Basque mural on Divis St, lower Falls.
Below, a young traditional singer from the Basque country singing at the launch of the new mural.
Click to enlarge
Copyright © 2012 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X00576 X00577 saoırse; askatasuna; belfast basque solidarity committee; free all basque political prisoners
Extramural Activity 