There are a lot of places where Murals have proven to convey unification, history and culture inside a community. In Northern Ireland around 2.000 murals are depicted on fences an buildings, still telling stories of the troubles of former times. Most of those can be find in Belfast, with over 700 wall paintings.
They date back to the early 20thcentury – where it was a main tool for political expression. The topics vary depending on its location and artist – but generally depicting cultural symbols that are connected to a certain historic incident. A lot of those are mere political propaganda – but are still standing today as historic evidence and value especially for the people still living in Northern Ireland.
Contrasted with their surroundings, the murals evoke an awkward dissonance: Today, downtown Belfast is vibrant, bustling, and safe, while the murals harken back to a time when the city was anything but.
A more recent approach in creating awareness through murals is the project called Wrinkles of the City, executed in Cartagena, LA, Berlin, Shanghai and Havana. This project managed to incorporated faces of local personalities and cultural icons as subjects for each mural, highlighting each city’s unique architectural qualities as well as enhancing its sense of identity.
This gives an brief impression of how Murals can successfully redefine public places as open-air art galleries – supporting cities retaining history and culture. They can be used as a tool to prevent dehumanisation and bringing back life in their blank and blightedstreets.
References:
Alpha History (2017):“Northern Ireland Murals“. URL: https://alphahistory.com/northernireland/northern-ireland-murals/
REILLY, LUCAS (2018): „The Militant Murals of Northern Ireland“. URL: http://mentalfloss.com/photos/555460/20-militant-murals-northern-ireland
