Rowel Boyd Friers was one of Northern Ireland’s most significant cartoonists, celebrated for his gentle but incisive satire. Born in the Lagan Village area, just a few minutes away from where you are standing, he showed an early talent for drawing at Park Parade School and won a scholarship to the Belfast College of Art, studying there until 1942. His professional career began when the Portsmouth Evening News published his work in 1940, prompting him to establish his own commercial studio and contribute cartoons and illustrations to Punch, The Radio Times, Daily Express, Belfast Telegraph, The Irish Times, and many others.
Rowel wasn’t just a great cartoonist, he was an accomplished artist and his watercolours and oils are held by institutions including London’s National Portrait Gallery and the Ulster Museum. He illustrated more than thirty books, notably John Pepper’s humorous works on the Ulster dialect, and an American edition of W. B. Yeats’s writings. He was also active in theatre as a set designer, working with the Lyric Theatre and served as President of the Ulster Association of Drama Festivals.
However, he is best remembered for his political cartoons during the Troubles. Having begun with light, general humour, he felt compelled to address the unfolding unrest from 1969 onwards. Though he received threats, his satirical stance was defined by impartiality and a commitment to the ‘sanity’ of criticising all sides while advocating peace. His contributions to the arts were recognised with an MBE in 1977, an Honorary MA from the Open University in 1981, and election as President of the Royal Ulster Academy of Arts in 1994. He remained an influential cultural figure until his death in Holywood, County Down, in 1998.