Belfast north

The Home Front

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2014-11-07 TIgersBayWWIFull+

This new piece in Tiger’s Bay illustrates various kinds of ‘Wartime Work’. 

The central image of soldiers at the battle of the Somme is surrounded by images of various occupations: shipyard workers and miners perhaps, along with women welding, carrying coke and nursing. It’s not clear what the “fair wartime wage” refers to: there was a general strike at the shipyards in 1919 (The Great Unrest | Workers’ Liberty). The original Somme photograph is widely known – it was also reproduced in the Bangor mural to Sir Edward Bingham; the nurse is apparently the Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia – WP. The woman carrying a sack of coke is from the Imperial War Museum’s collection.

The image above is from after the main wall was completed; the second image, below, shows the lower wall also. The lower wall is intended to be full, but painting has ceased indefinitely. The third image below shows the red, white, and blue kerb-stones, with the H&W cranes in the distance. The artist Jonny McKerr is shown at work. Another in-progress shot can be found at Arts For All. Last year McKerr did a similarly-styled piece on The Belfast Blitz.

Update: The low wall was completed and an information-board added for the official launched on 2015-06-25 – see Aftermath.

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1912 1914 1916 strike shipyard H&W bugle bugler JMK Piece officially launched 2015-06-25

Ardoyne, Bone, Ligoniel

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2014-10-24 Ardyone+

26 volunteers and 14 others from the Ardoyne, Bone, and Ligoniel areas are commemorated in a new (2014-10-05) mural. The images below show artist Mickey Doherty, himself an ex-prisoner, at the start of the process – with the grid-work visible – and shooting an “action” shot for VICE TV.

The previous mural also commemorated local volunteers (34 painted portraits rather than a printed board), but this mural adds a Celtic cross, funeral volley, and images of Armagh women’s prison, the cages at Long Kesh, and the H-blocks, as well as (an inverted image of) blanketman Hugh Rooney – detailed images can be seen in Prison Walls.

2014-10-12 ArdoyneGrid+

2014-10-24 ArdyoneMDoc+

2014-10-24 ArdyoneWide+

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X02304 X02284 X02305 X02306 gerard mcdade david mcauley james reid joseph mccomiskey pat mccabe marley alan lundy john copeland terry toolan stephen scullion terry clarke declan mccluskey patrick markey peter hamilton thomas begley jim saunders martin meehan

JFTC2 x2

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2014-10-24 EndInternJFTC2Lig+

Ligoniel (above) and New Lodge (below) copies of a JFTC2 (Justice for the Craigavon Two) stencil by Damian Walker of GaelForce. The Ligoniel location is proving controversial: Walker’s previous attempts have been painted over three times, according to an image in this 32 County Sovereignty post, which also alleges that Sınn Féın has been behind the removals. According to the Tele, a housing executive van was burnt out in response to one of the white-washings. There has been no such controversy in the New Lodge.

Previously: JFTC2 on the mountain | Justice in Hugo Street

2014-09-19 NLodgeJFTC2+

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X02307 X02208 john-paul wootton brendan mcconville end british internment

Occupied Ireland’s Bus Circle

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2014-10-24 LigonielBusCircle+

“This mural was created by Youth Action, occupied Ireland’s Ligoniel Young Men with the help of Blaze FX Art Design.” Previously it read “Northern Ireland”. The mural includes one youth gazing down into the city, the bus coming up to Ligonield, two spray-paint artists painting the mural and (just off to the left) two boys fishing.

2014-10-24 LigonielOccupied+

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X02308 X02309 future voice billy butch european union ycni

Prison Walls

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2014-10-11 ArdyoneDetailFarrell+

Here are two details from the Ardoyne, Bone, Ligoniel mural presented separately, as well as a shot of bouquets of flowers in front of the plaque on the stone put in place in 2003. The first reproduces a photograph of Maıréad Farrell during the “no-wash” or “dirty” protest in Armagh Women’s Prison. (See the middle of this 1989 Frontline documentary.) The second shows the walls and guard-towers of the H-Blocks (featured previously in You Know Where). The frames and photographs of 40 locals are printed, not painted.

Video of the launch:

2014-10-11 ArdyoneDetailKesh+

2014-10-11 ArdyonePlaque+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02277 X02278 X02279 dedicated to those friends and neighbours from ardoyne, the bone and ligoniel whose contribution and support to our struggle was and remains invaluable aıthníonn muıd a gcrógacht óglaıgh na héıreann meán fómhaır 2003

Shrines To Our Ladies

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2014-10-03 NLodgeCnamBan+

Religion and politics mix in this image of the Blessed Virgin Mary gazing at a recent mural at the bottom of Teach Na bhFıann/Fianna House (formerly Dill House) in the New Lodge. “Cumann Na mBan” in Irish is “the women’s organization/council/society” in English. The organization in question is the republican paramilitary group which was founded on April 2, 1914 and celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.

Previously: Mothering Sunday In Beechmount | Sister Soldiers | BVM Supports POWs

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Hark! To The Tramp Of The Young Guards Of Éıreann

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2014-09-19 ArdanLaoLeft+

A pair of boards have been added to either side of one of the Bone memorials in Clós Ard An Lao, one for Na Fıanna Éıreann – the boys – and one for Cumann Na gCaılíní – the girls. The words are those of the Marching Song Of Na Fıanna Éıreann, except that in the second verse (the third stanza shown, first in the image below) the words “Cumann Na gCaılınní [sic]” have been inserted instead of “Fıanna Éıreann”.

The third image, below, shows the whole wall; for a close-up of the central boards, commemorating locals who lost their lives in the troubles, see Bone Memorial.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02202 X02203 X02204 cumann na mban firm each footstep erect each head soldiers of freedom unfearing and eager to follow the teaching of our hero dead on for freedom set we our faces to the dawning day in our own land when strength and daring shall end for evermore the saxon sway truth on our lips purity in our hearts strength in our arms blessed be our and like the who won for her glory in the days that are gone clean be our thinking and fruitful our teaching that we may deserve here when the fight is won soldiers and champions of eire our mother fear we no sassanach his schemes or steel foes of no foeman by comrades sisters all who are striving for weal

Up On The Roof

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2014-09-17 TowerMcCreesh+

Six of the seven New Lodge tower blocks each feature two hunger strikers, on the narrow sides of the building. Those featured are the ten who died in 1981 along with Frank Stagg and Michael Gaughan. Here are images of five of them. Above is Raymond McCreesh, below is Kieran Doherty with a tricolour and ‘Justice for the Craigavon 2’, third is Martin Hurson and a Palestinian flag, fourth is Francis Hughes, and fifth is Frank Stagg.

An annotated Google map and a table give the Irish, English and former names of the flats (“houses”) as well as their locations and the hunger strikers on each.

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Comrades In Resistance

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2014-09-15 NLodgeComradesLeft+

A Che Guevara quote – “I don’t care if I fall as long as someone else picks up my gun and keeps on shooting” – unifies two panels bearing masked men firing funeral volleys, Irish and Palestinian shields, and “Our day will come” in both Irish and Arabic.

Previously: Someone Else

2014-09-15 NLodgeComradesRight+

2014-09-15 NLodgeComradesWide+

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X02190 X02191 X02192 tıocfaıdh ár lá saoırse