‘How the Shankill Road mission hall is being brought back to life’

Argyle Business Centre, a well-known charity in the area and owners of Shankill Road Mission, has teamed up with the Vault Artist Studios to transform the hall into a nucleus for the arts.

Stephanie Bell, Thu 12 Oct 2023.

The Belfast Telegraph came to speak with us on the work we have been undertaking in our studios at the Shankill Mission Building:

Argyle Business Centre, a well-known charity in the area and owners of Shankill Road Mission, has teamed up with the Vault Artist Studios to transform the hall into a nucleus for the arts.

Not only are 30 artists set to share modern studio space in the newly-renovated former 19th century meeting place, but a busy programme of events for the community will be rolled out next year.

Accustomed to seeing the landmark site closed since 2009, curious locals have welcomed a peek inside the now buzzing building where doors have remained open during major renovation works, which began in May.

The building had been earmarked for redevelopment into a 48-bedroom four-star hotel, with Argyle Business Centre saying it still has plans to develop accommodation on the site.

But in the meantime, the charity’s CEO Drennan McBride says he is delighted to see the historic hall coming back to life.

“At one time there would have been 2,000 people on a Sunday in the mission hall.

“While the church was knocked down in the 1970s, it left the administration block.

“The building had a huge meaning for a whole lot of people and now we hope that the next generation can get to benefit from it.

“We are delighted to see it brought back to life and a partnership with Vault and a new collaboration with the Dutch university ArtEZ.

“There is a whole wide world of art out there and we are now knocking on the door of it.

“Historically, visitors would have come to the Shankill for the shopping, but sadly that has taken a hit, and we now hope that new people will come here for its arts development.

“There is a rich history in the area around the Great War and the more recent dark period of the Troubles, but there is also a story to be told about its art.

“There are a number of art organisations in this part of the city and many young people involved in the arts, so we hope that we can put a focus on that going forward.”

The Rev Hugh Montgomery was the force behind the mission hall, which became colloquially known as the Albert Hall.

Rev Montgomery envisaged the Albert Hall as a core family support mechanism for all the workers drawn from the countryside to the city for work during the industrial revolution.

The building included a food kitchen, clothes exchange, welfare support, medicinal and dentistry cover, as well as spiritual guidance.

At its peak, 2,000 people attended for Sunday services, but as the years progressed, the congregation dwindled.

Sometime in the 1970s, the circular church building was demolished, leaving the four-storey administration frontage block.

It continued to host Sunday services in its main hall, with four shop premises on the ground floor providing Shankill Road frontage.

By 2009, the congregation had dwindled to just 12 parishioners and their families, and reluctantly the decision was taken for them to join Townsend Street Presbyterian Church and close the Shankill Mission.

Argyle Business Centre agreed to buy the building with the support of north Belfast charity the Flax Trust, which funded the purchase.

From the start, it was the aim of Argyle Business Centre to use the premises for economic and social regeneration in Belfast as a whole.

The charity focuses on the economic regeneration of the greater Shankill through enterprise initiatives, business programmes and business support.

It started in 1990 with 32,000 sq ft of lettable workspace and has since expanded to 82,000 sq ft, providing space for 55 businesses, employing 350 people, contributing around £6.5m in wages annually to the local Shankill economy. Now with the support of the Greater Shankill Partnership the charity is delighted to see the building finally come back to life again.

Neal Campbell from Vault Artist Studios describes the vision for the old mission hall: “We will be offering the largest studio space in Belfast with room for 100 artists across a whole range of disciplines — from painters to visual arts, comedians, DJs and photographers.

“We are community-facing in our work.

“We will be running a host of events from markets, workshops, talks and exhibitions, to festivals and gigs.

“The events will offer an opportunity for everyone in the area to get involved in the arts.

“Most of our events will be on the ground floor while the second floor will be a dance studio and there will also be an events space on the first floor.

“It will also be home to Belfast Tool Library which came about out of the Vault and will offer the community a chance to borrow tools for free for work around their homes and gardens.

“However, our primary function is to offer studio space to artists.

“We believe passionately that the arts is the catalyst for regeneration in our communities and that it helps to build resilience, improve peoples’ lives and ultimately gives a lot of joy and creativity into the world.

“Things are really starting to happen within the arts and now we hope to help change provision of the arts in this part of the city and be part of that.”

As renovation work continues and the building is gradually transformed, both charities hope to see a full events programme rolled out next spring.

They have also developed an exciting partnership with ArtEZ, which is the biggest art university in the Netherlands.

As well as hosting students for residency at the hall, the charity hopes to develop a Unesco practice-based research programme in Belfast focused on arts and peace building.

This will involve the design of a long-term program of activities to include multiple workshops and artistic actions that will lead to exhibitions, seminars, conferences and publications .

Mr McBride explains: “The local community groups who host the Dutch students are keen to have the international perspective brought by these students who are integrating into the daily life of north Belfast.

“The exchange of views works both ways. The students see daily life in Belfast in a working-class community, the community activists and groups get a small taste of the wider world, particularly with the post-graduate IMAE (International Masters Artist Educator) students on a 16-week placement in Belfast working directly with them on the ground.

“These students are coming from areas as diverse as Lithuania, Ukraine, Germany, Finland, Greece, Caribbean, Iraq, Iran, and the USA.

“It is helping us to strengthen the arts in the Shankill and show local people the value that’s in them.

“We hope to build on these experiences and will welcome the next cohort of 12 undergraduate students in October until December and another for a week’s taster visit in January 2024.”

In the meantime, local people have been invited to pop into the newly-transformed building to see for themselves what is on offer and how the Shankill Mission Hall is set to once again become a thriving hub for community life.

Read the full article on the Belfast Telegraph.