WHEN Christian Champire, mayor of the small French town of Grenay, asked Jim McKee to deliver a mural project for the fifth year running, the Co Tyrone artist was surprised to get the call in the midst of the global pandemic.
The state-funded annual arts project, which sees him lead small groups of young people to depict various themes on murals at different locations, has meant that for the past five summers the Donaghmore man has spent six weeks in a community where he “feels very at home”. But this year, as with everything else, the project brought very different challenges.
“I nearly didn’t go,” says Jim. “But I felt it important to show solidarity to people who have been very good to me, and also to try and maintain some sort of normality.”
Before he won international acclaim as an artist, Cookstown-born Jim was an all-Ireland champion boxer, winning at 67kg welterweight in 1987 and again two years later at 81kg.
After an initial career as a carpenter, he began painting professionally in 2003 after Irish jazz singer Mary Coughlan bought his first painting when she met him coming out of a framer's in Co Galway, where he was living at the time.
He was then approached to do a show which sold out and so his new career began, with collectors of his work now including President Michael D Higgins and former Irish rugby coach Eddie O'Sullivan.
Also an accomplished singer-songwriter, it was through his music that Jim first travelled to the annual folk festival in Grenay, in north-east France's Pas-De-Calais region, as a performer.
He then became known to them as an artist and as well as exhibiting in Grenay and nearby Lens, has been involved in the mural project for the past five years.
“It was a very eerie feeling going through an empty Dublin airport at night back in June as it was landing in a deserted Charles de Gaulle in Paris with only police and soldiers there," he says.
"And the usual six weeks of the project were extended – firstly to eight weeks to allow me to quarantine on arrival, and then to 10 weeks to extend the project so that smaller groups could take part and allow for social distancing.”
Jim admits quarantining abroad was “a lonely experience” and he missed his partner, novelist Emma Hetherington and their five children. A heatwave and Covid-19 restrictions also made the residence more difficult.
“On the job itself we have to wear masks which make the language barrier worse, not to mention working through an intense heatwave which saw us having to down tools when it got too much and temperatures reached 42C,” Jim says.
Grenay has a long mining history and is also steeped in the First World War – it's 20km from the town of Arras, which has lent its name to two of conflict's major battles – a past which is reflected in Jim’s designs. Other murals feature themes of culture, diversity, sport, education and symbols of friendship and hope for the future.
In total, his artwork is now featured on an impressive 30 murals which extend across the town, from the cemetery walls, to indoor areas in schools, the local theatre and on outside gables of other public buildings.
“I find the people of Grenay very modest and humbling," Jim says, adding: "I did manage to squeeze in a couple of outdoor concerts, which was a strange experience because when I looked down everyone was wearing masks and it was hard to know if they were enjoying it or not."
Mayor Champire believes Jim’s "joie de vivre" is part of the reason the citizens of Grenay they keep inviting him back to their town.
“Jim brings his culture, his sensibility, his human and artistic qualities and his ability to bring together stories and places and to express human feelings with simplicity and strength. He knows how to train the young people of the city to surpass themselves.”
Mr Champire also recognises the benefits of the project overall to his town, which is twinned with the Donegal town of Ballyshannon.
“It shows that young people have great commitment skills and that they are ready to achieve great things if they are trusted and given the means and time. It also makes it possible to express the political commitments of our town.
“We are neither Derry nor Belfast but we believe in humanism, the teachings of history, political struggles, the horror of wars, respect for the weakest and most fragile and the joy of sharing.
“Through Jim’s guidance this project proves that art is a stronger gateway than the language barrier and that it’s a necessity in our lives daily.
“Finally this project shows the value of collective work. In these times of individualism it is a beautiful lesson.”
With just one week to go, there are a few home comforts Jim is looking forward to after over two months on the job in such unique circumstances.
“All in all this year has been a great challenge,” he concludes. “I have enjoyed it and feel immense pride and a sense of satisfaction as I do every year when the project ends, but maybe a bit more this year. I know one thing for sure – I will enjoy a good hug when I get home not to mention a long bath, a cup of tea, some HP sauce on my food and a good pint of Guinness.”
