Belfast west

Justice

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This is a gallery of some old and newer pieces at the top of Springhill. Above and immediately below are the pieces painted in 2014 in support of Palestine. (For the tank protester, see David And Goliath. The ‘Four Irelands’ piece was never finished – it was going to show the shrinking Gaeltacht.)

The others (Noah Donohoe and CSP) are from last year (2021). Cumann Spóırt An Phobaıl (Fb | ig) is an all abilities (and all ages – starting at age 5) soccer club based on the Ballymurphy Road in west Belfast. The club was profiled in the Irish News in late 2020. “CSP Abú!”

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Inspire, Uphold, And Make Happy

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The wall at the top of Springhill Avenue was knocked down to great acclaim in 2017 (Guardian) but the impact was merely cosmetic as a wire fence and substantial shrubbery continued to block the way. The removal of the wall also meant the removal of the pro-Palestinian murals painted on it: Palestine Abú | Man Against Machine | Hellfire. In its place a large board was put in place celebrating the history of the area and especially the contribution made by Des Wilson and Noelle Ryan who worked in Springhill House for over forty years. Both Des and Noelle were interviewed by NVTv in 2012. Noelle died in 2014 (An Phoblacht) and Des in November 2019

The left hand side of the mural shows Mother Teresa, who lived and worked in the area with four nuns from 1971 to 1973 before being put out (allegedly) by the Catholic church (TripleVision documentary).

On the right, the old and new Springhills are contrasted, with images taken from the same spot approximately 30 years apart.

Springhill Avenue, west Belfast.

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Her Old Tradition Of Nationhood

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“Saoradh salute the men and women of violence,” namely the signatories to the 1916 Proclamation, the women of the 1970s IRA, and modern “dissidents” with home-made weapons.

The plaque on the left is to the IRA’s Pearse Jordan, next to the centenary celebration of the Proclamation, Ag Fíorú Na Poblachta. The board was been moved to this Falls Road location from Ardoyne; it replaces an anti-RUC/PSNI mural.

Hugo Street, west Belfast

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Leila Khaled

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Palestinian icon Leila Khaled, who took part in aeroplane hijackings in 1969 and 1970, is featured in this new mural pro-Gaza mural in Hugo Street. The central portrait is a replication of a famous photo by Eddie Adams (WP), taken after her first skyjacking; she then underwent plastic surgery to disguise her identity prior to the 1970 attempt. (WP; see also minute 30 of the 2005 Swedish documentary on Khaled included below).

This fading mural is in Hugo Street, west Belfast. For the mural in 2014, when it was launched, see the Seosamh Mac Coılle collection.

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Copyright © 2022 Paddy Duffy
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The Right To Defend Yourself

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“We seek nothing but the elementary right implanted in every man: the right if you are attacked, to defend yourself.” Re-imaging took a decisive turn into re-re-imaging with the return of hooded gunmen to east Belfast, at the junction of Newtownards Road and Dee Street (at the old Bright Street), replacing a mural for the Glentoran Community Trust. It’s not clear who the UVF felt attacked by in 2011; it is possible that this mural is also about local muscle-flexing in addition to sectarian politics or attention from the police. Eleven years later, the mural is still standing, though somewhat the worse for wear.

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The Blues

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East Belfast Protestant Boys (Fb) mural “dedicated to Gareth Keys” with the statement (on the side wall): “Our message is simple: where our music is welcome, we will play it loud; where our music is challenged, we will play it louder.”

In the old Hemp Street, nearly opposite Derwent Street, east Belfast.

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Flax Gatherer

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Manchester duo Nomad Clan (web) – seen painting Harland & Wolf at the Dirty Onion during Culture Night/Hit The North 2017 – returned a year later to paint on the Newtownards Road. In keeping with the previous piece at this site – Deirdre Robb’s flax flowers – they painted a “female flax gatherer from a bygone era” (East Side Partnership).

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Night Taxi

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Free-hand sprayer Dan Kitchener’s (web | tw) latest mural in Belfast (in Enfield Street in the Woodvale) places a black taxi – a mainstay of transportation in West Belfast – in the streets of Tokyo. To our knowledge, this is the first piece of street art in PUL West Belfast other than on the “peace” line; it will be interesting to see how well it survives compared to both sectarian murals and street art in the city centre.

“The title of the piece is ‘You can go Anywhere’ to show that with hard work and determination, you can explore the world. The mural is Sponsored by local Butchers shop Hugh Linton Butchers and R City youth group which are an award-winning organization helping Communities Integrate Through Youth. With the help of Jonathan Hodge local community volunteer. The taxi’s number plate HWL 1970 is a nudge towards the establishment founder Hugh Linton” (Belfast Walking Tours Fb).

Dan released a video of the mural in progress. Previously by Dan for Culture Night: The Dream | Blurry Eyed.

Funded by Communities In Transition with support from Greater Shankill Partnership and youth group R-City (tw) whose ‘footprint’ logo appears in the top left of the first image, above.

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In Defence Of The Woodvale

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The end wall of Columbia Street in the Woodvale was knocked down, taking with it a former Duke Elliott/UDA mural, which was then replaced with boards (rather than murals) commemorating the history of the UDA and Elliott. Elliott lived one street over, in Leopold Street (WP). He was killed in 1972, at age 28, in a dispute with other UDA members.

Ohio St

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Ulster And Scotland Did Answer The Call

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The Battle Of Assaye (India) took place on September 23rd, 1803, and the 74th regiment of the Royal Highland Fusiliers became known as the Assaye regiment in recognition of their performance (WP). By the time of WWI, the regiment had been merged into the Highland Light Infantry, whose 2nd battalion fought at the Somme in 1916 alongside the 36th (Ulster) Division (WP). The Highlanders’ emblem (which still includes the word “Assaye”) is on the right, the Ulster Volunteers’ on the left. In the apex are the flags of the UVF and YCV (14th battalion Royal Irish Rifles). This new mural commemorates the UVF volunteers of both WWI and the Scottish brigade: J. Rankin, Br. Creer, B. Wilson, B. Creer, A. Steele.

“Ulster and Scotland did answer the call/Together in battle they bled and fall/Shoulder to shoulder their lives they did give/It’s to them we give thanks/For the lives that we live.”

“We are the dead. Short days ago/We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow/Loved and were loved/And now we lie/In Flanders Fields.”

Disraeli St

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