Graffiti artist Saype creates giant fresco on Stormont's lawn
A huge image of intertwined hands has been spray-painted on to Stormont's lawn by French artist Saype as part of an international art project.
It is intended to symbolise friendship, dialogue and solidarity and the artist said he chose the location because Stormont is "a place where people come to speak to each other to find a common solution".
It is part of his wider project, Beyond Walls, which has toured several cities throughout the world, with similar large-scale art installations in Paris, Geneva and Dubai.
Saype is based in Switzerland and the project was supported by the Embassy of Switzerland in the UK.
His lawn fresco at Stormont was created using biodegradable materials which will fade from view over time.
The artwork is designed to be seen from above, which encourages the viewer to see the bigger picture.
"When people see my work, they said, ‘super cool, we need this kind of message right now, but we can’t understand the painting on the ground’, and then when we show the picture [from the drone], they say ‘wow’, and they love the idea that when you’re in front of a situation you don’t understand what it is, and when you take a little bit of distance, you see it more clearly", Saype said.
The Stormont artwork is part of the Belfast Photo Festival, which runs until the end of this month.
