In Episode 2 of Pure Ballina, Seamie and Anne-Marie chat to Al Hester, better known as street artist Maser.
At the age of 15, Maser began painting graffiti on the streets of Dublin, where he soon earned the respect of other artists in Ireland and throughout Europe for his unique abstracted style. Today, his large scale mural work and his collaborations with artists such as musician Damien Dempsey mean that he is one of Ireland’s best-known contemporary artists.
Last week, as part of Ballina Fringe Festival's Community Street Art project (also called Pure Ballina!), Maser spent four days creating a vibrant new mural located on Hill Street in the heart of town.
The Pure Ballina Community Street Art project is supported by Creative Ireland and Mayo.ie, and is sponsored by Dulux Ireland and Archers Ballina.
The project aims to offer community groups the opportunity to work with experienced artists to develop and create high-quality street art in Ballina. In November, Maser plans to return to create a second artwork, with the young people from the Foroige Neighbourhood Youth Project.
