We’re very excited to work with Belfast art collective FRUIT SHOP on a unique art and food sharing project.

In honour of the blooming of saxifraga fortunei during October and November, FRUIT SHOP presents a feast which brings together warm, intimate exchanges with the glut of the summer. Calling on the textures of froth, foam, sweat and other fluids, temperature and cultures condense to form the basis of this collective project.

Reflecting on the legacy of reciprocity and mutual support within queer culture and community, we offer a menu informed by public donations of fallen fruit and nuts grown or found within Belfast’s city limits.

With a fare based on the seasonal bounty donated, there are two ways you can participate in the ritual Feast of Saxifrage.

1. Register before November 10th to receive a limited edition menu card for free in the post, then make the food yourself at home on the night of Tuesday 17th Nov.*
2. Buy a strictly limited multi-course meal prepared by Fruit Shop, in one of two slots, for pick up at the project’s cafe at 438 Ormeau Road. Time slots for collection on the 17th: 6.30 – 8pm and 8.40- 10pm. If you don’t have the means to pick up, please contact us on book and we’ll see how we can help.

Half of the meals will be ticketed at £15, half will be ticketed at £3 for those on low income. You’ll also have an option to buy a pay-it-forward meal for someone in the community. All proceeds will go towards payments for queer artists.

Outburst encourages you to gather online with friends, family and chosen kin while eating, to reflect on ways to support each other in queer community. Share your thoughts with us online #saxifrage and keep an eye on our social media for info about our Zoom gathering at 7:30pm for those making food at home or partaking of the first pickup of the Feast.

Further details on our socials.

*Cards posted to Ireland and UK addresses only.

Presented in partnership with Belfast Design Week.

As LGBT people living in Jamaica, we are often forced out of spaces simply because of who we are or how we identify. Within the spaces we create for ourselves, we have learned one thing: to always be creative. Jamaican LGBT Creatives are breaking barriers in Style and Fashion, and when it comes to visibility and activism, our community must be included. Every day we are reminded that we are brave, because we are not free.
Our presence is our resilience.

In a new Outburst commission, we’re excited to present a unique on-street exhibition of images from Jamaican queer creative activists in the heart of Belfast’s historic Smithfield area.
Conceived in Kingston and shot in the city’s Waterfront area in October 2020, Our Presence is Our Resilience is a bold declaration of defiance and power that illuminates how Jamaican queer and trans folx have turned their passion for fashion into an exhilarating form of activism. Informed and inspired by style magazines and the fight for justice for black trans lives in Jamaica and beyond, Emani Edwards, Kyym Savage and their team have created images that speak to the faith and fierceness of taking up space.

Works will be displayed in the Smithfield car park and on frontage in Gresham Street and Winetavern Street.

Project supported by British Council and Belfast City Council.

Displayed in Smithfield by permission of Bywater, Ashmore and Smithfield Yard. With thanks to Haller Clarke.

PROJECT CREDITS & INSTAGRAM

Creative Director/ Stylist/ Model:  Emani Edwards @emanithegenderlessstylist
Creative Assistant/Model: Kyym Savage @Kyym_Savage
Model/Artist: Akeem Walker @Akeemwalker710
Make-up Artist: Nassive @Nasouvebeautybar
Make-up Artist: Khajay @emphasis_faces_by_khj
Hairstylist: Paris Lewinsky @i_am_paris_lewinsky
Style Assistant: Shauna Wilson @Shauna_k_fashionista_avoir
Photographer: Sasheina @Sasheina

Belfast Ensemble and Outburst Arts, in partnership with the Ulster Orchestra, bring you a very special new collaborative project featuring local and international artists.

Beginning with a short filmic meditation and call to action on the last day of the festival, MASS will culminate in a large- scale immersive orchestral performance with Belfast Ensemble, Outburst and the Ulster Orchestra for Easter 2021.

Written by award winning composer Conor Mitchell, with visuals by film makers from around the world, MASS is a series
of queer rituals for change. Responding to our rapidly changing social and political landscape and accelerating erosion of democracy, MASS invites us to contemplate what it means to come together en masse and to reflect on the vital responsibility each of us has within that.

Globally, we are in an unprecedented time of powerful mass social movements. From Black Lives Matter and climate justice protests, to white supremacists and the rise of the far right, the rituals of gathering and collective action are being played out; some with compassion and humanity, others with deceit and oppression.

One of the most famous forms in classical music, the mass has six movements, including the Kyrie (call for mercy), Glorias (praise) and Credo (affirming belief and hope), creating a musical ritual from dark to light.

Through this ten-minute virtual communion of music, words and visuals, we invite you to join us in closing the festival with a queer spirit of change, as we move into the dark winter nights and on towards the light of Spring.

Check out our socials for more information on how you can participate at home.

Music by Conor Mitchell

Visual contributions by Mohammad Shawky Hassan (Egypt) Mariah Garnett (USA) Madonna Adib (Syria), Simone Harris (360 Artists, Jamaica) Paulo Mendel & Vitor Grunvald (Blank Tape; FENDA, Brazil)