The organisers of K-FEST are preparing to unveil a mural in support of Ukraine in the days ahead of this year's festival taking place next month.

The piece, an image of Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine in the patriotic blue and yellow is currently on show at the Central Hotel on Exchequer Street in Dublin and will be transported to Killorglin for the June Bank Holiday weekend to exhibit it in the town.

K-FEST has been lucky enough to link up with Hang Tough Contemporary Gallery in Dublin to showcase Dublin based artist ‘Aches’ incredible mural.

Aches, who is the biggest street artist in Ireland, specialises in large scale murals and graffiti. Born in 1992, he started drawing and painting at a young age and began to paint graffiti when he was 15-years-old. After graduating from NCAD with a degree in Visual Communications, Aches began to fuse his knowledge of graphic design and graffiti.

Aches has been invited to design and create original artwork for projects around the world, in countries such as Denmark, Hungary, Spain, Sweden, Scotland, Austria, Switzerland, England and USA. After a decade of painting outdoors, Aches’ artistic practice is now shared in equal balance between contemporary murals and studio work.

K-FEST has been collaborating with established, emerging and local Irish street artists to create murals in the town of Killorglin for many years now, Art Director of the festival, Rochelle Lucey, explained.

"Since 2014 we have had a number of incredible murals done on walls and on lightboxes throughout the town. They leave a real mark and show the impact that K-FEST Arts festival has had on the town over the years. We have worked with artists such as Solus, Dan Leo, Lorraine McDonnell, Kinmx and Pawel Wrobelski. They have each brought something special to the town and transformed the town’s walls into an open-air gallery, continuing to make Killorglin the essential cultural attraction on the Ring of Kerry. The premise of our festival is to support emerging talent and to bring life into old unused properties in the town which we do every year on the June Bank Holiday weekend. By bringing these amazing murals onto the old walls and spaces in Killorglin we are also uplifting the town throughout the year."

This year they are getting Baz to create a beautiful new piece on Langford Street in Killorglin based on the life of Máirín Cregan who was born in Killorglin in 1891.

"Máirín Cregan was an Irish nationalist who was involved in the 1916 Easter Rising and Irish War of Independence. She later made her name writing for children, as well as writing plays and novels for adults. Recently there has been one of her written plays in Killorglin called ‘Hunger Strike’ put on stage and a plaque was unveiled at the grave of the Cregan family, at Dromavalla Cemetery, Killorglin."