Belfast is set for a fresh lick of paint as one of Europe’s most respected and longest running street art festivals returns to the city this week.
The 2026 Hit the North Street Art Festival will feature more than 50 muralists, including an exciting wave of homegrown talent thriving within Northern Ireland’s vibrant urban arts scene.
A key highlight of this year’s programme is a special showcase on York Lane, where emerging local artists will take centre stage. Supported by the Belfast School of Art at Ulster University and The Art Shop, the showcase of students and recent graduates will celebrate this new breed of emerging talent while honouring Northern Ireland’s rich cultural heritage for mural art.
Organised by Seedhead Arts and running from 30 April to 4 May 2026, the festival’s diverse and dynamic line-up has something for everyone. Alongside large-scale murals created by acclaimed artists, it includes the ‘Other Place Lunch’ for placemakers and artists, guided walking tours, a late-night street art market and film screenings.
Hit the North will culminate this Sunday 3 May with its much-anticipated annual block party, taking over Kent Street and Union Street in Belfast.
Now in its 13th year, the festival has become a signature cultural event, empowering artists and transforming buildings and public spaces through contemporary mural art. Launching this year’s line-up Adam Turkington from Seedhead Arts said;
“In the last year Northern Ireland’s street art scene has thrived – despite a downturn in official funding – with the establishment of the region’s first legal street art walls as well as mentorship and skills development programmes for street artists. More and more local organisations and businesses are embracing the powerful role art plays in placemaking, making Belfast an attractive location for established artists as well as street art stars of tomorrow who want to test their talents and build careers while still painting from the heart.”
Renowned artists taking to the walls of Belfast for the first time include Phlegm, Case Maclaim, Doppel, El Rughi, Erin Bradley Scott, Hush, Ricky Also, SATR and Silver Forms.
Hit the North Street Art Festival 2026 is supported by many other local businesses including Bullitt, Ulster Sports Club, The Sunflower, Common Market, Boundary, Bodega Bagels, Saulty Buoy Beer, Outlines, Daisy Chain Inc, Established, Translink, Cathedral Quarter BID, Linen Quarter BID and University of Ulster.
For full details on the programme, visit: seedheadarts.com