Kneecapping
© By Rita Duffy
Click Here for Artist's page in Archive
Rita Duffy says, ‘I made a series of large charcoal drawings in 1989, inspired by George Grosz and Otto Dix – my first solo exhibition at the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s gallery in Belfast.’
Rita Duffy was invited, along with several other artists, to exhibit some of this work as part of the West Belfast Festival to commemorate the 20th anniversary of British troops on the streets.
She says: ‘During a planning visit we witnessed a kneecapping and were quickly ushered away from the scene. As I drove off to apparent safety in a new location I encountered a man lying face-down on the grass, with two men with guns standing over him. Knowing he needed help, I instinctively put my foot on the brake and looked in the rear-view mirror. I asked for some expression of support from my fellow passengers, but all I got was blank silence - broken only by the command to drive on”.
(from Rita Duffy’s Radio 3 Essay, “Remember who you are” April 2009)