Depictions of the Dead

“The Bloody Sunday Commemoration Mural”
“The Bloody Sunday Commemoration Mural”
“Stop killing my sons, brothers, husbands, fathers.”
“Stop killing my sons, brothers, husbands, fathers.”
"Bloody Sunday"
“Bloody Sunday”

                                                            There are two major types of murals that represent the dead; they tend to fit into the category of memorialization or martyrization. The first type, of which “The Bloody Sunday Commemorative Mural” is an example, does not overtly attempt to direct the opinion of the viewer. Certainly, “The Bloody Sunday Commemorative Mural” confronts the viewer with the faces of the dead, but it does not offer a narrative with which to analyze the image. This is opposed to a mural like “Bloody Sunday,” which, for example, uses Jesus imagery in its portrayal of Jackie Duddy. This imagery encourages the audience to view Duddy as a martyr and, in doing so, colors the way in which the audience interprets the mural.

Political Murals of Bogside and Palestine

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