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ART AND THEATRE:Illustrator Owen Smith has always been influenced by muralists and figurative work. So when he was asked to produce a poster for Druid Theatre’s The Silver Tassiehe came up with a picture that pulls together Irish history and has echoes of traditional theatrical poster design, writes AIDAN DUNNE

THERE’S A TOUCH of heroic grandeur to the poster for Druid’s forthcoming production of Sean O’Casey’s play The Silver Tassie, pictured on the cover of this magazine. The stirring image, by American artist and illustrator Owen Smith, cleverly combines the two interlinked worlds in which the story of the main character, Harry, unfolds. He is the ace footballer whose pride, prowess and well-being are pointlessly and cruelly sacrificed on the Western Front.