Welcome to Belfast – UNESCO City of Music

A monumental, colourful inscription welcomes passers-by on the façade of the Telegraph Building on Donegall Street in Belfast: “WELCOME TO BELFAST – UNESCO CITY OF MUSIC”. Below it, portraits of musicians are arranged in a sequence of rectangular panels.

Created in 2025, the mural was produced by artists Friz, whose real name is Marian Noone, and Gerry Norman, and commissioned by Belfast City Council. It was unveiled to the public in November 2025. The occasion was the fourth anniversary of Belfast joining UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network as a “City of Music” in 2021.

The artwork celebrates the diversity of the city’s musical culture. Belfast has a long musical tradition, ranging from traditional Irish music to rock, punk and electronic music. The musicians and different styles represented in the mural reflect this breadth and the vitality of the local music scene.

According to Friz, the two artists spent 16 days working on the large-scale mural. She described the project as challenging but also a labour of love.