Art in Belfast will be covered in full detail for you today and our opening section will discuss the best art galleries and museums near you.
After that we will get into a variety of other topics like local art supply stores, events, festivals, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures and statues, art classes, studios for rent, and the top frame shops in your area.
If you are after any specific section you can jump straight to it using the table of contents on the left and we are also including a Belfast art map with all of the various places we mention throughout the post pinned on it.
The United Kingdom is a country that we have covered often on our site.
Best Art Galleries & Museums In Belfast
In our humble opinion the best art galleries and museums in Belfast would be:
The Ulster Museum was founded all the way back in the 1820’s and today it is the largest museum in Northern Ireland and is home to over 15,000 works of art that you can check out when they are open from 10am to 5pm every day but Monday when they are closed.
The Golden Thread Gallery is always free to enter during their hours of 11am to 5pm Tuesday through Friday and from 11am to 4pm on Saturday. They also sell art and put on different types of education programs throughout the year like lectures, workshops, and more.
One of the more popular exhibitions at The Mac are the great sculptures by Irish artist Mark Garry. It is also a free gallery to enter and they have programs for local visual arts, theatre, and dance plus various workshops.
Catalyst Arts is the host of the FIX events that are held twice a year and are the longest-running performance art festival in the UK in addition to various workshops and smaller events held each month.
At Gormleys Fine Art which is open from from 10am to 5:30pm every day but Sunday you will see works by famous artists like Andy Warhol, Robert Indiana, Banksy, Damian Hirst, and Keith Haring. They have a sister company called Gormleys Auctions which can help with buying or selling plus they provide services in consultancy and sourcing.
One of the oldest commercial art galleries in Belfast is the Eakin Gallery which is open from 10am to 4pm Tuesday through Saturday and who buys and sells pieces and can also do great custom framing.
Platform Arts is open from 11am to 4pm Wednesday through Saturday and has studio space to rent.
Materials & Supplies Near You
These art stores in your area should have all of the materials and supplies you desire:
The largest contemporary arts festival in Northern Ireland is the Belfast International Arts Festival where you will see theatrical performances, music, dancing, and of course all kinds of art media when the event goes down every October.
As the name suggests Young at Art is an international festival near you for kids up to age 17 and the adults who want to accompany them that takes place each March.
A few months later head to the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival where over 60,000 people gather to enjoy music, theatre, literature, comedy, and plenty of art.
North Street is home to the Hit the North Street Art Festival every September.
Earlier we mentioned FIX which was founded by Catalyst Arts and is one of the longest-running live arts festivals in all of Europe.
Art Dealers & Appraisers
To find a new unique piece for your collection or to figure out the true value of something visit art dealers and appraisers in your area like:
The Charles Gilmore Gallery represents some of the best contemporary and 20th Century Irish and International artists including works ranging from Andy Warhol to the Northern Ireland street artist Bambi that are for sale.
We mentioned earlier how Gormley Auctions is affiliated with Gormley Fine Art and in addition to auctions they can also do private sales and valuation services.
Every month you can find an auction at Ross’s Auctioneers & Valuers who will provide free collection of your auction items from anywhere in the UK.
Some of the available services at Whalley Fine Art include appraisals, insurance, or agent and representation services. They also put on auctions and are known to be very good at custom framing.
Golden Thread Gallery and Eakin Gallery from our initial list also sell art.
Walking Tours
Local art walking tours can be a lot of fun when the weather is nice:
The most famous murals and street art through the Falls Road area and the Shankill neighborhood are at the heart of Mural Tours Belfast.
Every Sunday at noon you can check out the 2 hour Seedhead Arts walk that begins at the red benches on Commercial Court and the people who run Seedhead also run the Hit the North Street Art Festival we mentioned before that takes place every September.
Sculptures & Statues
You might also want to take some photos of these statues and sculptures in your area:
Rise Sculpture at Broadway Roundabout
Spirit of Belfast at 1 Arthur Sq
The Big Fish at Donegall Quay
Beacon of Hope at Thanksgiving Sq
Sweet Water Arch at 44 Stranmillis Embankment
The Searcher at 4 Holywood Rd
Anyone who has been to the Broadway Roundabout has probably already seen the Rise Sculpture which is the biggest public art sculpture near you and it was created back in 2011 by Wolfgang Buttress.
Dan George created Spirit of Belfast which was unveiled back in September of 2009 and today you can find it at Arthur Square near the access point to Victoria Square.
John Kindness constructed The Big Fish back in the late 1990’s which is located found near the Lagan Lookout and Custom House.
Andy Scott created the giant 15 meter Beacon of Hope that towers over Queen’s Bridge.
Sweet Water Arch was designed by Denis O’Connor.
CS Lewis Square is home to The Searcher which was sculpted by local North Irish artist Ross Wilson.
Belfast Art Classes
You might be interested in private lessons or group classes for kids, teens, or adults but either way the best art schools in Belfast would be:
There are classes and workshops for all ages and skill levels available at Art & Design Factory. Kids can get a lot out of their seasonal art camps, after-school classes, and weekly art lessons in your area.
Royal Ulster Academy started up all the way back in 1879 making it the oldest visual art school in Northern Ireland and they routinely hold one of the largest annual open art exhibitions in the country each year.
There are more than 200 different courses available at Crescent Arts Centre for all ages and skill levels plus they rent out studio or workshop space.
For university level classes you can get undergraduate and post graduate degrees from the Belfast School of Art who also has shorter courses and their instructors can even do part time lessons if you aren’t chasing a degree.
Studios For Rent Near You
If you are ready to rent out art studio space you can contact:
The full art scene near you was just broken down to the best of our abilities. We listed the best galleries, museums, events, shows, supply stores, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures, classes, studios, and framers that you may want to check out.
If you made it this far you might just know quite a bit about the local art scene yourself. Feel free to share your own tips, or to let us know if we may have gotten anything wrong in the comments.
We hope you enjoy your time at the best Belfast art galleries, museums, supply stores, or doing whatever else you plan to do with the info.
This post and all of the posts on our site are edited by Dan Soloman who has been a huge fan of art since he was a little kid. His mother was a good local artist, and she taught him the trade from a very early age. He studied art and its history in both high school and college, has worked at multiple galleries, and recently has begun creating and editing online content for this site and some other online media platforms.
