Colombian street artists Sancho and Anderson are in town this week for Ireland’s largest street art festival, Hit the North.
The pair, who are well-known in their home city of Cali, are here through the British Council – and bring their own unique style and creativity to Belfast’s North Quarter for the next two days (September 20-21 2018).
Their visit is the start of a peacebuilding project between British Council Northern Ireland and British Council Colombia and comes just weeks after local Belfast street artists Friz (Marian Noone) and EMIC (Eoin McGinn) were in Cali for the Graficalia Street Arts Festival.
Speaking about the collaboration, Jonathan Stewart, Director, British Council Northern Ireland said: “We are pleased to build on the Belfast/Cali connection and are delighted to have the chance to bring such renowned artists to this year’s Hit the North.
“Arts can often play a positive role in everyday peace making. Providing a space for alternative and often challenging narratives. We have seen that locally but also In Cali, street art has been used as a transformational tool to work with young people and minimise youth violence.
“This project comes on the back of our international Peace and Beyond conference which was held in Belfast earlier this year to mark the anniversary of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement – and we hope through this, to continue to make connections, share best practice and find new ways to overcome some of our biggest hurdles both in Northern Ireland and with our emerging partnerships in Colombia.”
The British Council is the UK’s leading cultural relations body. For more information on EMIC and Friz’s recent visit to Cali, visit https://nireland.britishcouncil.org/about/press/belfast-street-artists-m... or for more informaton on current opportunities in Northern Ireland, visit nireland.britishcouncil.org or follow on Twitter: @BCouncil_NI.
Hit the North, with Heverlee is a partnership between Community Arts Partnership and Seedhead Arts. For full programme and lineup information, go to www.seedheadarts.com/hit-the-north