A new John Hume mural has appeared on a popular Derry street.
The city's newest mural on Great James Street pays homage to a young John Hume on the side of a gable wall with the words ‘PEACE’.
Mr Hume, who was born in 1937 and is a founding member of the SDLP, died in 2020 following a long period of illness.
Read more: New musical drama to tell story of John Hume’s life
One of the most prominent politicians in Northern Ireland for more than 30 years, the Bogside native played a major role in the peace talks that formed the Good Friday Agreement.
Hume was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with former UUP leader David Trimble, and he also received both the Gandhi Peace Prize and the Martin Luther King Award. He is the only person to receive the three major peace awards.
Donal O'Doherty is one of the masterminds behind the new mural - which took three days to complete.
Mr O'Doherty is now one of the founders of a new visual arts project in Derry called 'Peaball'.
Speaking to MyDerry, Donal said when he was approached to do the 'John Hume Project', he was weary due to its political nature but insisted it didn't take much thought because "Hume was different, he was in a league of his own".
"Rachel [Eastwood] who owns the Grand Central Bar on the Strand Road approached me and asked whether I would like to it," Donal said.
"When John Hume passed away Rachel wanted to do something to honour the man. I told her that we don't usually do anything that's political and we try not to affiliate ourselves with any particular political party. But John Hume, the man himself, is just different.
"And when we were planning on eventually doing the project there was a lot of delays for a number of different reasons.
"Then we had a bit of back and forth trying to get the right image and that's how Chris from Ferry Clever got involved.
"We actually did Chris' shop for him and he had an image and I really liked the image and I thought that I would do our own artist impression of him."
Donal explained how the inspiration for the mural came as he thought of his 18-year-old self in 1998, the year of the Good Friday Agreement.
He added: "I wanted this project to appeal to a younger audience as well.
"I remember that I was only 18 at the time of the [Good Friday] agreement and I remember how things used to be before peace ever happened in this city.
"I have teenagers myself and I look at the way they're able to live their lives today and I just think that we have a lot to thank John Hume for and I hope that people think that we have done him justice when it comes to honouring the man.
"This is to a political endorsement to the SDLP in any way, we just wanted to be part of a special project."
You can visit FerryClever on Bishop Street and purchase their John Hume prints. All proceeds go to the John and Pat Hume Foundation.
Read more: Girl's amazing portrait of loving granda goes viral
Read more: Award-winning illustrator brings solar system to Derry
To get the latest breaking news from Co Derry straight to your inbox, sign up to our free newsletter.
