Hit the North is a street art festival based in Belfast. Now in its 10th year murals have been created across the city. The event also forms part of the cities ‘Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival’ which itself is now in its 23rd edition.
Over 60 artists have taken part. Many taking permanent walls across Belfast whilst others have joined as part of an end of event paint jam. Festival artists including ROA, Voyder, Stuido Giftig, Annatomix, Danny Rumbl, Rocket, Woskerski, Elena Lourens, KMG and Ed Hicks have all created major pieces on permanent walls
Local Artists
Local artists also get a good look in. Friz and KVLR are regulars on the Belfast scene and have created impressive pieces. Aches meanwhile has travelled up from Dublin to add his third mural to the area. Artists including Rob Hilken, Pens and Noys also have created pieces
Seedhead Arts and Hennessy
First established over 10 years ago, the event is organised by Seedhead Arts. This time partnering with Hennessy NI they have put on Belfast’s biggest street art festival to date. The initial idea was to help support the rejuvenation of the North Street area of the city. Since then the festival has grown and become a key part of the urban arts scene in the city.
Hit the North
In total over 60 pieces of street art have been created as part of the Hit the North Festival 2023. All artists contributing to an already plentiful palette of walls around Belfast City Centre. A busy weekend for the arts in the city. As well as the street art, Belfast was also hosting the Fools Festival part of the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival.
Belfast Street Art Locations
Cathedral Quarter
The majority of the activity of the Hit the North 2023 festival takes place in the area between North Street and Kent Street. Here, a brown field site provides a number of big walls as well as hoardings on which the paint. In the surrounding streets, other walls are available with wall owners happy to make them available to artists. At the centre of it all, the Sunflower Pub provides a backdrop. Itself a popular hangout for creatives, it provides an ideal focal point for an exploration of the area.
Kent Street – Big Walls
By far the main amount of street art can be seen in the area of Kent Street. This is the centre of the Hit the North festival and the walls either side are lined with pieces. Due to the volumne we’ve split them into the big walls and festival walls. The big walls are often larger and take more time to produce whilst the festival walls are generally (though not always) street level and are created over the period of the festival.
Annatomix
An urban fox sits over looking the area of Kent Street and the waste ground in front. For Birmingham based Annatomix this is the fifth mural she has painted in Belfast and the second for Hit the North. That first festival was in 2018 and her rabbits from that time can still be seen from that time. Her work usually features animals and birds designed in a geometric way. The wall on Kent Street sits next to a mural from Bust. Itself, one of the main pieces from 2022’s event. The colours used for the urban fox have been intentionally designed to compliment the earlier work.
Friz
A purple woman draped in gold sits at the front end of Kent Street. In the background gold coins are piled up whilst Magpies sit around her. These are the source of her wealth, Magpies like shiny things and so they bring them to her. For local artist Friz, this was a similar idea to a piece she painted 8 years ago nearby. She wanted to recreate it in her style now to see from a personal perspective just how her work had evolved.
Rocket 01
Kent Street Festival Walls
ADW
A homage to painters and decorators everywhere. ‘Brothers and Sisters of the Brush’ is a tribute to those people in the trade who spend their time with paint. It was inspired by a play called ‘Brothers of the Brush’ by Jimmy Murphy about house painters in the 90’s. Wanting to try something different for each wall, this time the idea was to make it look like a sticker. Initially starting out working in 3D modelling and computer animation. The recession of 2008 prompted him to move into stencil and spray work and it’s something he’s been experimening with every since.
Alana McDowell
‘You Already Have It’ is the message from Alana McDowell. An illustrator from Larne it has been painted in a style true to her signwriting expertise. The idea of the message being that whatever it is that you are looking for, it’s probably already within you. You just need to seek it out.
Ali P
A swift looking for a place to roost. It’s a sad state of affairs that many of the old buildings that they once would have called home are now disappearing. Locally there are calls to demand that newer buildings provide nesting boxes for the birds, and this painting by Ali P is a homage to that. A DJ as well as an illustrator, the artist is known for her childrens books and paintings of birds, women and nature.
Angry Dan
Featuring a box of pens, pencils, rubbers and crayons. This is a piece meant to inspire those thinking about whether making art for them is the right choice. Spoiler alert – it always is no matter the form in which the art presents itself. Angry Dan is an artist from Walthamstow known for his lyrics. Often positive, his murals use relevant imagery to present them in a bright engaging way. You can watch an interview with Angry Dan here.
Asbestos
Featuring his trademark eyes this time peering through a series of ‘L’ learner plates. It’s about being a learner in life and not forgetting that. Asbestos work can also be seen nearby overlooking North Street. That piece was part of the 2022 festival and has since become a huge hit for photographers and street art fans alike. “The common theme in my work is masks” he told me. “The eyes can hide and reveal ourselves and allow us to change personalities from day to day”.
Chroma Chameleons & Street Art Sweet Heart
An abstract landscape combining the talents of two artists. Chroma Chameleons and Street Art Sweet Art are from Worcester and Stratford Upon Avon respectively. There they have been working together on creating the Worcester paint Festival. Here in Belfast their work has combined a love of nature with Chroma’s abstract patterns. The result a multi coloured landscape in the heart of the city.
Carly Wright & Sam McAleese
A side on portrait of a man and woman. Initially painted in a ghostly monochrome, the work has been brought to life with splashes of colour. Called ‘Soul Mates’ it is a partnership. Both artists, friends for many years, will swap from one portrait to the other every 30 minutes whilst painting. It’s a tactic to ensure that no one style ever dominates the work. The pair from Ballymena first started tattooing together prior to going into oil painting. As the oil paints got bigger and bigger the logical choice was to start experimenting with the street. Their mural ‘Beacon of Hope‘ in particular gained a lot of attention in their home town.
Codo
Only painting for a year and a half, Codo has fast become one of Belfasts most prolific artists. His work is bright and full of doodles which he layers on top of each other. Describing himself as an addictive personality. The passion for art came as a result of lockdown where he needed the positive and creative energy as an alternative to combating some darker demons. Since then he’s painted every day. Wanting to bring child like wonder and positive vibes into the world.
Cha Cha
Distressed with plastic and its overuse, Cha Cha’s work shows a water logged tree. “We are saturated by waste at every level” she told me. “We are full of consumerism”. Despite this as artist she feels that it’s not necessarily obvious what the solution is and this causes a personal anxiety. The piece at Hit the North is called water logged as a result.
Claire Prouvost
A French artist based in Dublin. Claire Prouvost’s created a pair of abstract characters. It was her second visit to Belfast in recent months. Travelling to the city earlier in the year to paint as part of an International Womens Day event. Her piece for Hit the North shows off her colourful and bold style, itself inspired by Cubism.
Cyd Noble
An electric jungle with a monkey coming out of it. This piece is all about the fun for the Bainbridge based artist from Northern Ireland. This being the first street art festival the artist has taken part in. Better known outside the street art scene for her interior designs. She is also currently a contestant on channel 4’s ‘Big Interiors Battle’.
Danni Simpson Art
Originally from Australia, Danni Simpson is mainly known for her expansive cityscapes. On the street though she focuses on more animal and floral works. Her cityscapes being massively detailed, just one image could take her 100 hours to produce. For Hit the North she has therefore created a griffin. Except it’s the other way round. “I saw a lion and saw that it had some bird features so why not” she told me.
DMC
Francois Got Buffed (FGB)
A fun woopy cushion throw back to the 80’s saying ‘Street Fart’. FGB is known for his characters these days but really started in stickers and paste ups. One of the first characters he did create was Francois. Seeing it get buffed by the council just a few hours after it was put up, that’s where the name came from. It’s also the seventh year that FGB has been supporting the Hit the North festival, this time taking tours and helping with logistics.
HMC (Hannah Constance)
Fascinated by animals and bio luminence in Algi. HMC combined the two to make a lumisecent horse upon which are painted celtic symbols. The piece combines a number of her interests. Myth and legend with nature and the unique property’s of nature. Under UV light bio luminance can be seen in a number of environments and it’s part of the world around us. Ultimately though “I just like to create images not normally seen” she tells me. In addition to painting, HMC was the site manager for the festival. Something that she has now done for the past two years running.
Holly Pereira
A tribute to Belfast. Holly Pereira is an artist known for her lettering and has written ‘Failte go Beal Feirste’ which is ‘Welcome the Belfast’. Intrigued by the etymology of the city, the term ‘Beal Feirste’ is gaelic for ‘mouth of the sand bank ford’. “I think this place is suitably sandbank fordlike” she explained on instagram.
Kilians Art
Leo Boyd Prints
A printmaker Leo Boyd is an artist who likes to mash up prints and stencils. Originally from Hastings he’s lived in Ireland for a while now. His work at Hit the North was a satirical take on the 25 year anniversary of the peace talks. Showing two Godzilla’s in love over the Stormont building.
Myfanwynia
Themes of fantasy, childhood and identify are what goes into the work of Myfanwynia. She is interested in fairy tales and does a lot of narrative work around those. They are she says an allegory for human experience. Her piece at Hit the North 2023 features a Japanese waving cat in a jar which is being opened from which wishes pour out.
Novice
A piece inspired by Belfast’s diversity and by it’s print making heritage and the industry of print making. The work was inspired by a piece the artist had created for the recent International Women’s Day on Queen Street. An illustrator she has become known for her poster based art which she combines with Irish sayings.
Pigment Space
Rask – Ser – Sums
A celebrations of graffiti culture from Rask, Ser and Sums. The pieces from Rask and Sums being lettering based and spelling their names in wildstyle form. Ser has chosen to create character, perhaps modelled on himself. From Southend, the artist is one of the key people behind last years Southend City Jam. Known these days more for his expansive street art pieces, graffiti is where his background lies and that what he’s gone back to for Hit the North.
Saul
Inspired by Saul Goodman and Mushrooms, this is the energy Saul is bringing to Hit the North. The mushrooms, bringing their psychedelic energy set against a multi coloured perhaps cosmic sky. A local artist, for Saul it is her first street art festival. Normally painted without faces, this time she’s given the mushrooms a bit of extra personality.
West Murals
Based on the North Coast near Clare in a little fishing village, the sea is what Marcus from West Murals is passionate about. Starting doing ocean themed illustrations it was always going to be a thing so close to the sea. The piece is mainly freestyle but shows fish and a seagull on the body of a man.
Zippy
Belfast local Zippy is an artist known for her sign writing. This piece on Kent Street is called ‘You Missed a Bit’. A tribute to the common gag that street artists hear from passers by noticing the murals. The work is filled with elements of street art culture. First the hand that points out the bit that was missed. A section of barbed wire to give a nod to the illegal origins of much public art. Finally a Z which pays tribute to the artists love of typography.
Union Street Main Walls
Running from North Street and intersecting with Kent and Library Streets. It is from here that you are able to access the waste ground which now houses some of the areas main murals. No doubt soon to be developed, the area once was full of factories and houses. The remnants of which can still be seen.
Aches
Dublin based Aches is one of Irelands most sought after artists. For Hit the North 2023 he’s gone back to his graffiti roots and re-created his famous tag. Using a blend of colours it’s a tag that stands out and presents a unique optical effect to the viewer. The piece has been placed next to a portrait from one of the previous incarnations of the festival.
Danny Rumbl
A big wall overlooking the main festival area from Dutch artist Danny Rumbl. His fun piece features a dog with a trumpet marching along.
Nol
Fun and joyful, Nol’s characters pack together on his feature wall on Union Street. Using bold solid colours and strong black lines the happy folk he creates are meant to be fun and joyful, nothing more. From Holland the artists has painted a number of times at festivals around the UK particularly at Cheltenham and Bristol.
Ed Hicks
From London Ed Hicks is an artist known for his expansive dramatic landscapes. His piece on Union Street is directly influenced by the sublime painting ‘Avalanche in the Alps’. With it he wanted to evoke a sense of awe and wonder so that the viewer themselves feels like they can become a character in the painting. Starting from an initial concept sketch, the painting then evolved instinctively across the wall of the Sunflower Pub.
KVLR
Local artist KVLR is well known in the area with a number of local pieces. His choice for Hit the North was a character piece. A work overlooking the waste ground of the main festival space.
Union Street Festival Walls
All The Doodz
An Alpaca fishing for ducks because… why not? ‘Duck Yeah’ says the Alpaca in this fun piece from North coast based artist ‘All the Doodz’. Normally known for her work in installation art she plays with light, illusion and mimicry to create immersive works. The street therefore is a bit of a side hustle for her and a bit of fun. Her links with the Hit the North festival though actually go deeper than the festival itself. Her interest in street art starting when Adam Turkington, the Seedhead Arts main curator, ran a series of street art masterclasses. From then she was hooked on the medium and a love of street art was born.
Andrey Palval
Originally from Ukraine but now living in Bulgaria. Andrey Palval’s main wall shows a Tern mother nursing her young. The artist is creating a series of bird murals the intent of which, he says, is open to interpretation for each individual. Creating his piece on Union Street he finished earlier than most and got the chance to paint another spot. That piece of an Owl he created at the other end of the same street.
Chelsea Frew
Based in Glasgow, Chelsea Frew is a visual artist whose street work is often based on her illustration style. The piece on Union Street was supported by her wife Hazel and shows a series of runners in a race. Having only returned the week before from the London marathon. Running she said was “all I could think of”. The mural is also apt in that the day of the festival is also the day of the Belfast marathon.
Conor McClure
A menacing figure looms over whilst holding a bird in it’s hands. This is the bird catcher, once an actual trade and one in which his fiancés historic relatives in Limerick were involved with. Loving the idea he thought that it would be fun to depict on the street.
Glen Molloy
Two portraits from East Belfast artist Glen Molloy. The first a half tone portrait in a blue hue. The second using oranges. Both together appearing as if an interpretation of night and day.
Hixxy
Painting onto the doors of the waste ground that runs along Union Street. Hixxy is an artist based between the midlands and London. Her work is known for its use of colour and shape. For Hit the North she has painted a human table. It’s the type where one person lays across another. It shouldn’t work but it does and can only do so when there is trust between the people involved. Indeed that’s what the work is about, connection and trust. When it’s there, amazing things can happen.
Nean
From Belgium Nean is an artist known for his blending of landscape and portraiture. For Hit the North his wall is dominated by trees which tower up from the kerbside. In the foreground, a small character stands at their foot. It’s apiece that evokes the enormity of nature and how it can encompass those that embrace it.
Noys
A Derry based artist, Noys is known for his graffiti lettering and portraiture which he often combines. His main passion at the moment though is AI and how the technology that it creates could soon take over. For Noys there. is an element of new religion to it. One that could transplant all other ideas. As at one time guidance and knowledge would come from places like the church, now it might well come from machines. The woman in the portrait is an AI creation herself, further manipulated and then created onto the wall.
Rob Hilken
The word bród is written against a backdrop of isometric patterns and splashes. It means ‘pride’ in Irish and for Rob Hilken that represents pride in terms of culture, language and in the life we lead. Originally from Dudley in England, the artist moved to Belfast over 20 years ago and it’s a word he uses to describe the place he has made home. Set against a backdrop of isometric patterns it is born from a love of maths. “I just like the structure and the formality” he told me.
Razer
From Derry, Razer is an artist who has painted at every Hit the North. A graffiti writer at heart he decided to paint the portrait of a child from the troubles. The image is one that he had taken from an archive. In the image he is sat there carefree and innocent whilst in the background there are the signs of living in a militarised environment. For the festival the artist extracted the boy and set against a plain yellow background.
Wee Nuls
A quick piece from belfast local Wee Nuls. The artist wasn’t sure she’d be able to paint having only recently given birth. Actively breastfeeding at the time she was able to paint and support baby with the support of friends and the nearby Sunflower pub.
Library Street
JMK
A local artist, JMK likes to play with colour and that’s what he has done with his multi hued portrait. Known for his portraits as well as his flora and fauna. He had previously taken part in a Colombian exchange which saw Sancho Medina come the other way. Using art to work with young people at risk from gangs and cartels he painted a number of pieces on the street as well as facilitating workshops.
Peachzz
Inspired by the movie ‘Everything Everywhere all at Once’. The design was created immediately after watching that film. Peachzz wanted to play with the idea of split personalities whilst also acknowledging a wider presence in the form of a third eye. Normally known for her explorations of the natural world, this time the piece is a portrait and it’s an area of her work that Peachzz is wanting to develop further. Laying on its side it is dual toned with a rose, a nod to nature, covering the eye. It’s a piece that represents the dual lives in all of us as well as the factors externally which can impact upon us.
North Street
All the murals on North Street are actually based within the waste ground which sits between North and Kent streets. They are closer to the North Street side and so North Street it is.
David McMillan
An artist originally from Belfast but now based in Bristol. McMillan’s mural is a homage to the Irish pub and the great Irish drinker. Except that in this work there’s more than a bit of cheekiness. The drinker with his flat cap, pipe and glasses is holding up a half pint of Guinness and saying ‘ce nas pas une pint’ or it is not one pint. Surely not something the sturdy Irish drinker would accept.
Kaos
A graffiti writer from Belfast, Kaos is mainly known for letters but this time combining with portraiture. Painting instinctively he takes the initial image from pinterest prior to adapting. and painting onto the wall. “I’m doing it to keep my on my toes” he told me.
Pens
The giant face of a cartoon cat peers out across the waste land. Pens is an artist now based in Wicklow known for his playful characters. Usually preferring cats, pigeons and foxes these are all creatures that are at home in the urban sprawl. You see them everywhere and they all connect with each other in some way. Pens likes the thought that his urban creatures populate the city in different spaces.
Voyder
The latest in Voyder’s portrait series. They feature people that the artist knows contained in an oval frame. The background is dominated by sky but also with references to the area. Something that would be either relevant to the locality of the painting or the sitter. For this piece in Belfast, Voyder wanted to reference his own history in graffiti. Choosing his friend Mikey, a close friend, from his time painting in Bristol.
He has shown Mikey in a freight train yard. A place that his crew at the time would try and hit. Years later, he would become a tattoo artist, something that Voyder says is the perfect fit for him. “This man is a true artist, and one of the greatest naturally gifted illustrators I have ever known”. This coming from Voyder is high praise indeed.
Donegall Street
Andy Council
A Belfast seahorse featuring different elements of the city. Bristol based artist Andy Councils work combines elements of architecture and styles them into the shape of something living. In this case a seahorse.
ROA
Clambering up the side of the Bristol Post building is a black and white squirrel. The work of Belgian artist ROA, he is known for placing animals and birds in urban spaces. In particular he likes to work with the kind of animal that would be known to the area and, in some way, claim the built environment back for them.
Woskerski
From London, Woskerski is known for his hyper realistic, pop arty and slightly surreal imagery. Often working from photographs he has taken, he will often stylise them on the walls. Other times, he turns the images into a kind of toned down grotesque, never mean spirited though and always fun. It’s actually the second visit for the artist to Belfast this year. His first mural in College Court has become much photographed. No doubt his work on Donegall Street will be too.
Hill Street
Shane O’Driscoll
An Irish abstract artist known for his use of colour and shape.
Shok 1
Strong is the work from Shok 1. Showing a skeletal arm bent as if to show off its muscle. Shok is an artist who has perfected this ‘X Ray’ type style.
High Street Court
Conzo
Conzo’s piece features a punk resting against a ledge of some sort whilst holding a hammer. In the foreground a smashed tv set with a skull and some flowers inside. Graffiti tags are scrawled across and hidden behind the ledge is what could be a CND symbol. In the bottom right a cheeky little character addition from local artist FGB.
Other Main Locations
James Street S
Studio Giftig
Netherlands based Studio Giftig are known for their hyper realistic giant murals. Recently winning the 2022 prize for Mural of the Year from Street Art Cities one of the outputs of that award was a major mural at Hit the North. Their wall is certainly one of, if not the largest, of the festival. Based on James Street South in the linen quarter, it is inspired by the old linen industry. Featuring a red haired woman, itself a nod to the people of Ireland, it is painted on the wall of what used to be a linen factory. She is surrounding by deconstructed elements of the flax plan which is key in the making of linen.
Castle Lane
Emic
Just outside LUSH in Belfast’s busy Castle Lane is the latest work from local artist Emic. An artist known for his big murals, he already has a number of pieces in the area. Added to that Emic is a key part of the Hit the North festival and so was only able to create his piece after the event. Called ‘The Spiritual and the Temporal‘ his piece shows a woman with a golden halo around and framed with flowers. He was inspired in some way by the location. The wall lays on the site of Belfasts first castle. It was in this area that the city would start to grow. Destroyed after a fire in 1708 it was never rebuilt. Yet around it the community still grew. “It’s story still reverberates today as one of the power stuggles laying claim to rightful ownership and titles”.
Dublin Road
KMG
Aberdeen’s KMG painted in a tricky position above a outdoor foodcourt. Her typically colourful piece is her re-imagining of a Selkie. Inspired by Celtic mythology, it was a shapeshifting creature which could move between seal and human.
Collingwood Avenue
Ellena Lourens
A hand cradling a head is the core image shown on Ellena Lourens dual toned mural on Collingswood Avenue. With all her work, she tries to break down an image to it’s essential lines and shapes. This to a point where the feeling is still conveyed but the image itself takes a back seat. Feeling instead come to the fore such as warmth, tenderness and support. The furthest mural from the centre of the action in the Hit the North festival, it was located in the Holylands area of the city. “I really enjoyed painting in an area where so many generations live and feel honoured to have added this work to their community” she told me.
Hit the North is a street art festival based in Belfast. It ran from 20 April 2023 to 30 April 2023 and was organised by Seedhead Arts with support from Hennessy NI and Belfast City Council. With thanks to Adam Turkington, Francois Got Buffed and Emic for supporting. Also thanks to Neal Campbell for the use of many of the pictures used in this post.
For more inspiring city articles you might like take a look at:
- The Murals of the Southend City Jam
- Must see Murals of Belfast
- Murals of Ashford Unframed
- Hit the North celebrates 10 years
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