1st Prize
Loyalist Mural Against a Rainbow
by Elizabeth Dondlinger
Location : Belfast, Northern Ireland
Program : National University of Ireland, Galway, IFSA Butler, Fall 2005
Description : Throughout Northern Ireland, and especially in the more hostile areas of Belfast, the strange tradition has arisen of painting political murals on ordinary buildings. Both the Protestant-Loyalist and Catholic-Republican factions take advantage of neighborhood houses and apartments to express their views, often in menacing form. The mural in this photograph is a Loyalist depiction of the untrustworthiness of Sinn Fein, a Republic political party associated with the IRA. Each illustration represents an instance of alleged Sinn Fein treachery, including the acquisition of weapons from Florida. In the middle is Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, shown as half-politician, half-terrorist.
Other murals in the areas carry similar sentiments, frequently including masked men pointing machine guns at those who approach the neighborhoods. One nearby mural on a metal garage was pockmarked with bullet holes from target practice. At the same time, it was fascinating to observe that most paintings showed a high level of artistic quality. This incongruency is compounded if you look to the right of the building in this picture, you can see a rainbow shining faintly against dark clouds.