Rival Gallery

Grafiti Wall, Belfast, 1973

?Graf?ti Wall?, Belfast, 1973 - Oil on board, by Ralph Lillford, 1973. Associated with Northern Ireland (1969-2007). During ?the Troubles?, Belfast street walls became a place for rival sectarian graf?ti, often painted layer upon layer. A form of psychological warfare which also demonstrated control of terrain, the slogans were often directed at the British Army, exhorting them to ?go home?, or else boasted of paramilitary loyalties, such as ?Provos Rule?. Periodically the Army would drive past these walls and throw paint bombs at the slogans. The soldier wears a fragmentation vest, commonly known as a flak jacket, over DPM (disruptive pattern material) jacket and trousers. He wears his visor up on his helmet and carries an anti-riot shield. Date: 1974

© The National Army Museum / Mary Evans Picture Library

Cartoon, Good-Bye! (Gladstone and Disraeli)

Cartoon, Good-Bye! Conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli says goodbye to his political rival, William Gladstone, who was giving up the leadership of the Liberal Party, and not intending to appear much in Parliament during the 1875 sessions. Gladstone had already published a pamphlet challenging the Pope's claim to infallibility, and was about to publish a second one defending the first pamphlet against various criticisms it had attracted. (Gladstone would return to politics later.) Date: 1875

© Mary Evans Picture Library

Cartoon, Steering Under Difficulties (Disraeli, Gladstone)

Cartoon, Steering Under Difficulties -- a satirical comment on Disraeli's reaction to Gladstone's Irish Church Suspensory Bill, which was carried against the Conservative government by a large majority. Disraeli as captain threatens to blow up the ship, rather than allow Gladstone and Bright to take over the helm. The legislation, which came into force the following year, separated the Church of Ireland from the Church of England, and meant that the Church of Ireland was no longer entitled to collect tithes from the Irish people. A controversial law, it helped to dismantle the Protestant Ascendancy which had been dominant in Ireland for centuries. Date: 1868

© Mary Evans Picture Library