A National Treasure:The Big Yin Becomes Art

18 May 2017

Few comedians around the world can claim to be the subject of three 50-foot murals around their home city, but that honour will be giventothe Glasgow-born actor, musician, and stand-up comic, Billy Connolly.

The portraits, which have been created in secret by artists over the last few months, will appear in the coming weeks on walls around the city –becoming part of the city's official Mural Trail.

Some of the best artworks will be chosen for display as part of the official show of the three new portraits at The People's Palace in Glasgow, opening next month.

Of the three artists pickedto create a portrait of the very popular comic, Rachel Maclean might be seen as the ‘wild card’, with Billy Connolly saying he had been "completely mystified" by her work before he met her. Rachel, who is part performer and part filmmaker, is representing Scotland at the 2017 Venice Biennale festival.

For her “Billy Portrait” she designed a Bonnie Prince Charlie-style outfit,hinting atseveral of Billy's most famous jokes.

She then dressed him up in it, with plenty of make-up as well, and photographed him in the outfitto create the finished work, which is entitled 'Big Yin' – his Glasgow nickname.

Rachel Maclean said she felt worried by the task of capturing such a well-kent face, saying, "He is a national treasure in Scotland.”

Section A

Read the passage and underline the correct answers to each of the following questions.

  1. The subject of the article is

Billy Conolly

Billy Connoly

Billy Connolly

Billy Connelly

  1. The comedian was born in

Aberdeen

Edinburgh

Stirling

Glasgow

  1. The artworks are referred toin the article as

Pictures

Portraits

Photographs

Landscapes

  1. Rachel MacLean is described exactly in the article as

Part filmmaker and part performer

Part performer and part filmmaker

Part artist and part comedian

Part wild card and part comic

  1. Pictures will be displayed along

The Mueral Trail

The Mural Trail

The Murral Trail

The Muriel Trail

Section B

Tick ( ) the correct box to show if the following statements are true, false or don’t know.

TRUE / FALSE / DON’T KNOW / Statement
Four artists were chosen to portray the comedian
The pictures will be exhibited at the People’s Palace
The comedian was mystified by Rachel MacLean’s work
The comedian is a descendant of Bonnie Prince Charlie
The comedian likes wearing make-up
The pictures will each be 50 feet high

Section C

Complete this summary of the passage. Fill in the gaps using one or more words in each space. You may use your own words or words from the passage.

Billy Connolly is a world-famous ______(1) who is sometimes known by his nick-name, ______(2). To honour his work in ______(3)over many years, his ______(4)of Glasgow is sponsoring a series of ______(5)art works to celebrate his life and career. For some of the portraits, the comedian had to ______(6)in wild and colourful outfits – sometimes created especially for the occasion. One of the ______(6)involved, ______(7), said creating her artwork was a huge ______(8). She called Connolly a ______(9)with a ______(10)face.