TRAVEL
NEW DAWN, NEW DAY?
Derry-Londonderry, the first UK City of Culture, will this year host some of the most exciting arts events of 2013, including the Turner Prize exhibition. Anna Millar heads to Northern Ireland and finds a city on the cusp of transformation
A s the rain batters down, Derry’s Peace Bridge shimmers in the early evening light. A few feet away, the Ebrington army barracks have been transformed, the parade ground morphing into a 4000 capacity pop-up venue, the barracks proper set to play host to the Turner Prize this autumn. Behind me, back in the city centre, renovations are underway at the Guildhall; Derry’s famous walls stand proud; and renewed life is slowly coming to the waterfront. In the months to come local heroes will return, communities will be given a voice, and world famous dancers, playwrights, artists and rock bands will descend.
This is a city in transition. Walking back towards the centre I’m told that the Peace Bridge is serving its purpose. Created in 2011 as a symbol of unity and hope, it joins the west bank of the city (largely nationalist) to the waterside where the population is around 50% Catholic, 50% Protestant.
Derry, it seems, has lived a lifetime in contention. From the Troubles to its ongoing arguments about its name – nationalists, broadly speaking, favour Derry, unionists Londonderry – to the contentious issue of it being ‘UK’ City of Culture, this is a city on the periphery, about to step out into the spotlight. Confidence, you feel, is growing to embrace the title, in its own terms. Beyond the vast history of the walls, there’s an urban grittiness and quiet determination here, Derry’s ubiquitous references to its sectarian past showing where it’s been and where it might end up, should this year have the galvanising effect that many hope.
A post-conflict city, dreams of growth and renewal have only been partially realised here: the notion that any cultural accolade comes with a gold-embossed change-all cheque, a fallacy. Like Liverpool’s stint as European City of Culture, the trick is to take what you’re given and then work with what you have. As we walk around the walls, Derry’s extraordinary history unfolds, from the sieges of the 17th century to the peace-time present day. A momentary pause follows a description of the feeling of hope felt – and still being nurtured – by the 1998 peace treaty, which ended 30 years of sectarian violence; the more recent Saville Inquiry into Bloody Sunday and David Cameron’s subsequent apology bringing for some a degree of closure few believed possible.
Further along the walls, we pass The Fountain, the last protestant estate on the city side of the River Foyle. The day before, John Kelly, whose 17-year-old brother Michael was shot dead on Bloody Sunday, had spoken out about those erecting Parachute Regiment flags in the city ahead of the anniversary of the massacre. The flag is gone now: community activists on both sides working hard to keep the peace.
Later in the evening, at new arts space Culturlann, I speak to a young couple who’ve just moved back to the city from a spell in Glasgow: for them it’s about finding a new story for the city. ‘So many people watch the news, and all they see is fighting over flags, and feel nothing’s changed. Hopefully this year will encourage people to come and see there’s another face to us.’ As a visitor, it’s the juxtaposition of old and new that makes the city so fascinating. Saturday morning is spent with Bogside artist Tom Kelly, one of the artists responsible for the 12 iconic murals, known as the People’s Gallery. For Kelly, it’s not about hiding the past to make way for the future. He talks freely and candidly about the boy who blew himself up in his garden, trying to throw a bomb over a wall for the IRA, at the height of the riots, he speaks too about the lack of funding he feels the city and artists like him receive.
Across town at the Void, Derry’s slick contemporary art space, it’s an altogether different picture, as a young team rush around preparing for the opening night of Berlin-based artist Candice Breitz. While supporting local artists is important to them, this year is also about looking forward and putting Derry on the map as a go-to destination for cutting-edge international art. On the way to the airport the following day, the taxi driver asks what I thought of the place. I tell him the city seems 100 different things to 100 different people. He laughs and nods his head. For him, it’s simple: it’s about his daughter coming home from university. For the first time this year, she will bring her friends back to show them where she grew up. She feels proud, he says, and he’s proud too. ‘It’s funny. For a while there I couldn’t imagine how a wee city like ours would ever manage this year of culture, but I think we just might.’
See page 26 for highlights of Derry’s 2013 events programme. For comprehensive listings see cityofculture2013.com. ➙
21 Feb–21 Mar 2013 THE LIST 25