Three new art installations have been approved by Belfast City Council for the north of the city as part of a project celebrating Ulster Scots culture.
At the recent monthly meeting of the council’s Planning Committee, elected representatives agreed to a council officer recommendation for art panels to go up at Frydays Cafe, York Road; Second Time Around Charity Shop, Parkmount Street Belfast and Wine Fair, North Queen Street Belfast.
The applicant was Small Steps of the North Belfast Orange Memorial Hall, Alexandra Park Avenue, and proposals are for an Ulster-Scots themed project designed as part of a wider "Business Cluster Support Project".
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The council report says of the York Road installation: “The panels are proposed to incorporate photographs and text to explain the relationship of soda/potato farls and their key role in the Ulster Fry.”
It says of Parkmount Street: “The panels are proposed to incorporate photographs and text to explain the role of Ulster-Scots in philanthropy such as the foundation of Belfast Charitable Society and the role of an American Ulster-Scots descendant, General Ambrose Burnside.”
The report says at North Queen Street the panels are proposed to incorporate photographs and text “to explain the role of Ulster-Scots in whiskey distilling in Belfast and also the invention of Belfast ginger ale and brown lemonade.”
All the panels will be on gable walls and are proposed for a temporary period of three years.
The report states of each application: “The proposed panels will be for information purposes only and will not be used for the purposes of advertising. The proposal is considered acceptable as the proposed panel is not located in an area which features any historic, archaeological, architectural, landscape or cultural interest.
“The position of the panels on the host building and their scale and size in relation to that building is considered acceptable. The proposal is not considered to result in clutter when read with existing advertisements in the area.
“The panels are not high level and will not appear dominant or out of character within the context of the surrounding area. The proposed panels are not illuminated and are not considered to prejudice public safety.
The Planning Committee also refused a larger installation from the same project involving five printed panels measuring 24.4 metres by 12.2 metres, proposed for a gable wall on a house at Midland Close, close to York Street. The panels were proposed to incorporate photographs and text explaining important local Ulster-Scots connections.
The report stated: “The proposed panels are considered unacceptable as they do not respect amenity when assessed in the context of the general characteristics of the locality.
“The panels, if approved, given to their extent and position, would not result in good design as outlined, and would be out of place in this residential setting. The panels cumulatively would result in clutter when read together and with the existing poster panel located on the gable wall.”
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