While not submitted as an entry to the Festival of Hope, this photo by Amanda Slater captures part of the "In Paint We Trust" street art project taking place throughout Coventry as part of the 2021 UK City of Culture.
Amanda Slater shares this image on her Flickr page, along with this brilliant summary:
Ira Aldridge became Manager of the Coventry Theatre in 1828, making him the first black person to ever run a British theatre. His performances and the plays he presented led the city to petition Parliament to abolish slavery. He was also the first black Shakespearean actor, playing principal roles including Romeo, Hamlet and Othello. Amazingly, he had achieved all this by the time he was 20 years old.
Created by Midlands-born artist Dreph and located at the Belgrade Theatre the large mural is inspired by an original portrait painting of Ira Aldridge as Othello, painted by Henry Perronet Briggs in 1830, which is now part of the National Portrait Gallery collection.
