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1 INHOUD INLEIDING P.5 1. Motivering Van Het Onderwerp P.6 2 INHOUD INLEIDING p.5 1. Motivering van het onderwerp p.6 2. Afbakening van de probleemstelling p.6 3. Kritisch bronnenonderzoek p.8 4. Wetenschappelijke werkwijze p.9 LIJST MET GEBRUIKTE AFKORTINGEN p.12 DEEL I MURALS p.13 I.1. Afbakening van het begrip “mural” p.14 Waarom de term “mural”? p.14 Wat is een mural? p.14 Zijn murals dan graffiti? p.15 I. 2. The people‟s art p.18 Het muralisme in Mexico p.18 De community based murals in de Verenigde Staten p.19 Murals in Europa p.21 DEEL II NOORD-IERLAND p.22 II.1. De historische context van Noord-Ierland p.23 Noord-Ierland voor 1969 p.23 De komst van het christendom in Ierland p.23 Het begin van Engelse betrokkenheid in Ierland p.23 De kolonisatie van Ierland door de Engelsen p.24 De Plantation of Ulster p.24 The Battle of Boyne: de protestantse overwinning 1690 p.25 Anglican Ascendancy p.25 Groeiend nationalisme p.25 1 Act of Union 1800 p.26 Great Famine 1845 p.26 Home Rule 1914 p.26 Easter Rising 1916 p.27 De tweedeling van het eiland 1921 p.27 Noord-Ierland en de discriminatie van katholieken p.28 The Troubles in Noord-Ierland 1969-1994 p.29 Civil Rights Movement p.29 The Battle of the Bogside 1969 p.29 Internment 1971 p.30 Bloody Sunday 1972 p.30 Direct Rule p.31 Bloody Friday 1972 p.31 Blanket Protest en hungerstrikers p.31 Anglo-Irish Agreement 1985 p.32 Het Noord-Ierse vredesproces 1994-2008 p.33 Hume/Adams dialoog p.33 The Joint Declaration on Peace 1993 p.33 Staakt-het-vuren 1994 p.33 Good Friday Agreement 1998 p.34 Noord-Ierland nu p.35 II.2. De politieke context van Noord-Ierland p.37 Politieke partijen p.37 UUP p.37 DUP p.38 Sinn Féin p.38 SDLP p.38 Andere partijen p.39 2 Paramilitaire organisaties p.40 (Old) IRA p.40 OIRA p.40 PIRA p.41 CIRA p.42 RIRA p.42 INLA p.42 UDA/UFF p.43 UVF p.44 LVF p.45 OV p.46 II.3. Identiteit en cultuur p.47 Identiteit p.47 Cultuur p.49 DEEL III MURALS IN NOORD-IERLAND p.53 III. 1. Het ontstaan van de Noord-Ierse murals p.54 Het ontstaan van loyalistische murals p.54 Het ontstaan van republikeinse murals p.56 III. 2. Iconografie van de Noord-Ierse murals p.58 Loyalistische murals midden jaren 1980 p.58 Loyalistische murals begin jaren 1990 p.59 Loyalistische murals bij het begin van het vredesproces 1993 p.60 Loyalistische murals en de wapenstilstand 1994 p.60 Loyalistische murals na 1994 p.61 Republikeinse murals midden jaren 1980 p.63 Republikeinse murals begin jaren 1990 p.64 Republikeinse murals bij het begin van het vredesproces 1993 p.65 Republikeinse murals en de wapenstilstand 1994 p.65 Republikeinse murals na 1994 p.66 3 III. 3. Beeldtaal van de Noord-Ierse murals p.68 Symbolen p.68 Een communicatieproces p.69 Murals als artefacten p.71 III.4. Attitudes ten aanzien van de Noord-Ierse murals p.74 De loyalistische en republikeinse gemeenschap p.74 De veiligheidsdiensten p.76 De sociale huisvestingsmaatschappij p.78 Het toerisme p.79 De kunstwereld p.81 De regering p.83 BESLUIT p.86 BIBLIOGRAFIE AFBEELDINGEN BIJLAGEN 4 INLEIDING 5 1. Motivatie van het onderwerp Ik heb altijd een interesse gehad in zowel beeldende kunst als architectuur. En liefst mogen deze ook op een of andere manier inspelen op elkaar. Die begrippen zie ik ruim, maar daarom niet groots. Zelfs kleine ingrepen in de alledaagsheid van het stedelijke leven spreken me aan. Klein, maar bij voorkeur krachtig, of het mag ook groots, maar dan met een scherp randje. Publieke kunst, street art, graffiti, enz. kwamen naar voor als mogelijke onderwerpen voor een verhandeling. Ik vroeg een vriend om zijn foto‟s van Belfast opnieuw te mogen bekijken. Ik herinnerde me de impact van de muurschilderingen toen ik die beelden enkele jaren geleden zag. Opnieuw werd ik getroffen door de kracht die er vanuit ging. In deze scriptie staan de Noord-Ierse murals dus centraal. Zonder enige voorkennis, enkel vanuit een ongelofelijke fascinatie startte ik mijn onderzoek. Al snel bleek dat er in het Nederlandse taalgebied nog niets gepubliceerd is over dit onderwerp en bij uitbreiding ook heel weinig over hedendaagse muurschilderingen. Vanuit wetenschappelijk standpunt was het dus zeker de moeite om dit fenomeen eens te gaan onderzoeken. Mijn onderzoek houdt sterk verband met Noord-Ierland en zijn politieke situatie doorheen de geschiedenis. Tijdens het schrijven van deze verhandeling werd dit een zeer actueel topic. Na de parlementsverkiezingen van 2007 komt er tussen de radicale partijen een dialoog op gang die leidt tot het oprichten van een nieuwe Noord-Ierse regering. 2. Afbakening van het onderwerp De meeste mensen, zoals ik ook in het begin, kennen de Noord-Ierse murals van op foto. Wereldwijd zijn de murals te zien als cover van een historisch boek of als achtergrond in een nieuwsflash, interview of film over het Noord-Ierse conflict. De kracht van deze beelden wordt dus duidelijk algemeen erkend, maar keer op keer enkel aangewend als plaatje bij iets anders. Ook in mijn zoektocht naar literatuur bleken murals slechts af en toe vermeld te worden in de marge van enkele antropologische, sociologische of politieke studies. Zelden zijn ze zelf het onderwerp van een degelijke studie. 6 Daarom wil ik in deze verhandeling de enge visies van eerdere onderzoeken omdraaien. De murals komen centraal te staan. Ze zijn het product van een populaire activiteit. Sinds een eeuw bij de loyalisten en sinds de jaren 1980 ook bij de republikeinen. Enkel het bestaan van de politieke muurschilderingen in Noord-Ierland is al reden genoeg voor een waardevol onderzoek. Eigenlijk wordt hier het „fenomeen‟ mural in Noord- Ierland bestudeerd. Het is een poging het eigenzinnige karakter van deze schilderingen te vatten, in al zijn complexiteit en gelaagdheid. Dit gaat veel verder dan een beeldstudie. Het is een inspanning de betekenis van het fenomeen mural voor het dagdagelijkse leven van Noord-Ierland te begrijpen. Naast een ontstaan- en evolutieschets is het dus minstens even belangrijk na te gaan hoe de murals verankerd zijn met het politieke, culturele en sociale leven in de nationalistische en unionistische gemeenschappen van Noord-Ierland. Hebben zij daarin een actieve rol of zijn zij gewoon een weerslag daarvan? De muurschilderingen die hier worden besproken zijn de praktijk van een bijzonder complexe maatschappij. De Noord-Ierse samenleving is van bij haar ontstaan verdeeld geweest in twee gemeenschappen met enerzijds katholieken, nationalisten en republikeinen, anderzijds de protestanten, unionisten en loyalisten. Het is essentieel inzicht te hebben in deze tweedeling om de aard van het muurschilderen te kunnen begrijpen. Aangezien dit onderzoek bijna onontgonnen terrein is, moesten er keuzes gemaakt en grenzen gesteld worden. Het aantal murals dat gerealiseerd is in Noord-Ierland sinds het ontstaan van de traditie van het muurschilderen is enorm. Ze komen voor in de grote steden, maar duiken ook op in voorsteden, dorpjes en gehuchten. Daardoor is het onmogelijk om volledigheid na te streven is. Deze scriptie concentreert zich voornamelijk op murals in Belfast en in Derry. Dit zijn ook de twee steden die ik zelf bezocht naar aanleiding van dit onderzoek. Dat andere gebieden weinig of niet ter sprake komen heeft niks te maken met een gebrek aan interesse, maar met de mogelijkheid die me dat verschaft om de wel geselecteerde murals meer in de diepte te onderzoeken. Deze scriptie pretendeert zelfs niet een compleet overzicht te geven van de murals in Belfast en Derry. Het zijn de karakteristieken van murals zelf die dit onmogelijk maken. Dit zal verder in deze verhandeling duidelijk worden. Als volledigheid nastreven al mogelijk zou zijn, dan kan dit enkel door de lokale bevolking zelf gedaan worden. Want murals komen en verdwijnen. 7 3. Kritisch bronnenonderzoek Literatuur Ongetwijfeld zijn de drie Drawing Support-boekjes van Bill Rolston de basisliteratuur van dit onderzoek. Rolston is professor sociologie aan de University of Ulster. Sinds de jaren 1980 volgt hij de evoluties van de murals op de voet. Hij inventariseert welke nieuwe murals er verschijnen. Dit is zijn grote verdienste. Maar dieper gaat hij er niet op in. Zijn werk over murals is een deeltje van zijn onderzoek over globalisatie en massamedia. Hij schreef over truth telling in politieke kwesties, over racisme in Noord-Ierland, en hoe de nieuwsmedia het conflict representeren. Bij deze bron wil ik er toch op wijzen dat partijdigheid en politieke strekking van de auteur geregeld doorschemeren. Rolston noemt zichzelf een katholiek met een vervallen lidkaart, maar zijn nationalistische sympathieën schemeren af en toe door. Andere auteurs als Neil Jarman en Oona Woods basern zich ook grotendeels op Rolstons werk. Iconografische bronnen Bill Rolston heeft gedurende zijn onderzoek naar murals aan fotoarchief aangelegd. Ik gebruikte zijn gepubliceerde foto‟s uit bovenvermelde boeken. Zijn recentste gepubliceerde beeldmateriaal dateert van 2003. Tijdens mijn bezoek aan Belfast en Derry in april 2006 ging ik op zoek naar zoveel mogelijk murals en fotografeerde ze. Daarbij noteerde ik de locatie. Zo had ik recenter beeldmateriaal en kon ik ook vergelijken welke murals nog steeds bestonden. Monumentale bronnen De murals vormen vanzelfsprekend de eerste bron van informatie. Ik ging in Belfast en Derry kijken hoe ze eruit zien en waar ze zich bevinden. Wellicht was dit het meest boeiende deel van dit onderzoek. Mondelinge bronnen Ik contacteerde Kevin Hasson van The Bogside Artists. Tijdens mijn bezoek aan Derry ontmoette ik hem in hun atelier en we hadden een gesprek.
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