WATERFORD CITYAUGUST 2017 VISIT

MURAL BY ADOR AND SHUK

A compelling aspect of this mural's story is that it was reportedly never signed due to rain damage. This is powerfully corroborated by multiple sources from the time. Blog posts from the 2017 festival repeatedly lament the "horrible weather" and "torrential rains" that plagued the event. This weather presented significant challenges, particularly for artists from "dry countries", causing paint to drip and leaving many large-scale works "unfinished". An artist may not wish to claim a piece they consider incomplete or compromised by external factors.

FLOWERS ON THE STREET

Lula Goce's contribution to the 2017 Waterford Walls Festival was a significant addition to the city's burgeoning outdoor gallery. Titled "Flowers on O'Connell Street," the mural was painted on a prominent location at the rear of Dooley's Hotel. The creation of this artwork took place during the festival’s third and largest year, which featured 40 artists from five continents. Goce’s process was notably challenging due to persistent heavy rain. An interesting detail is her use of durable emulsion house paint, designed to last for a decade or more. The fact that the mural would eventually be replaced, despite the use of a long-lasting material, is a crucial point that highlights the festival's overarching philosophy.

WATER FEATURE

Usually when I photographed this it is/was in poor condition and while it was in reasonable condition there was a lot of debris in the water. In July 2018 it was dry and may have been undergoing maintenance. According to some accounts it has been replaced in 2023 or 2024 - I will confirm if this is true when I visit in August 2025.

DE LA SALLE COLLEGE

De La Salle College in Waterford is an all-boys secondary school with a rich history rooted in the De La Salle Brothers' educational mission. It is a prominent institution in the city, known for its significant building and long-standing presence.

ARTIST AT WORK

The "Electric Fury" mural is located on Newgate Street in Waterford, Ireland. This striking artwork was created as part of the annual Waterford Walls festival. The festival has successfully transformed the city into a vast, open-air gallery, using public art to breathe new life into urban areas. This initiative has firmly established Waterford as a notable destination for street art enthusiasts. The Newgate Street location is part of a larger trail of murals and street art pieces that can be discovered throughout the city.

PEOPLES PARK AUGUST 2017

Back in 2017, the People's Park in Waterford was a well-established and popular public space with a range of amenities. The park featured a Victorian-era bandstand, a cycle and running track, children's playgrounds for different age groups, and a skate park. A key feature was the "In-Visible" fountain, a contemporary sculpture consisting of a large acrylic sphere with water flowing over it, which had been installed in the early 2000s. The park was also home to the historic Carlisle Bridge, a pedestrian iron bridge that connected the park to the grounds of Waterford Courthouse. The former park-keeper's house had been converted into the popular Park Lodge café.

FISHERMAN BY ARCY

Ryan Christenson, a Connecticut native, began his artistic journey at a young age. While working in his father's landscaping business, he discovered graffiti at 14 and was immediately drawn to the creative freedom it offered, moving beyond the constraints of traditional 'paper and pencil'. His early passion led him to join the High Impact Crew, a graffiti collective based in New Haven, solidifying his roots in this counter-cultural art form. Despite his passion for street art, he pursued a degree in horticulture at Naugatuck Valley Community College.

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