2 Royal
Avenue
MayWe is delighted to manage 2 Royal Avenue, a new cultural venue that Belfast City Council have transformed playing host to artistic experiences, events and workshops.
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2025 Opening Hours
2 Royal Avenue is open 10am-6pm Monday to Sunday.
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Pop in to find some new additions to the space featuring...
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A New Installation 'Landscape with Columns and Figures' curated and commissioned by Belfast City Council with MMAS Architects and OGU Architects
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Our Kids Cosy area
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The Library Corner, featuring a selection of books for all ages by Northern Irish and Irish writers and a diversity themed collection, curated by Seamus Heaney Centre at Queens, Michaela Mc Dermott, and Orla McKeating, and supplied by No Alibis bookshop.
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A Homework Station
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Our Sensory Dome
Yallaa Café will be open from 10am-5pm Monday-Saturday and 12pm-4pm Sundays, serving delightful hot & cold beverages and delicious food, featuring a new lunch menu!
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Check out whats on below!
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If you are interested in using 2 Royal Avenue for an event or workshop, please contact 2royalave@maywe.co.uk​
EXHIBITIONS
7 - 30 MARCH
IMPRISONED IMAGINATION
Prison Arts Foundation
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Visit us at 2 Royal Avenue and witness the remarkable creativity that flourishes even in the most difficult circumstances. This inspiring exhibition showcases art, music, and writing created by individuals incarcerated in Northern Ireland’s prisons: Maghaberry, Magilligan, and Hydebank Wood College & Women’s Prison.
Curated from Prison Arts Foundation’s workshops, the exhibition features thought-provoking works, including the powerful poem For Those Who Judge. Each piece reflects the incredible resilience, imagination, and human spirit of those behind bars, offering a raw and authentic perspective.
The showcase is available to view for free every day from 7-30 March 2025 at 2 Royal Avenue, Belfast, from 10 AM – 6 PM.
Experience the talent and imagination that thrive even in the most restrictive spaces.
Guided Tours available 13, 20 & 27 March from 1:00-2:00pm:
Book a guided tour today and immerse yourself in this transformative experience. Explore how art can transcend confinement, challenge perceptions, and inspire change through the voices and stories of imprisoned individuals.
Spaces are limited, so book your place today by clicking this link
24 - 30 MARCH
BRAVE BELFAST CAILÍNÍ: BEING A GIRL'S GIRL THROUGH ART
Part of Imagine Fesival
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Brave Belfast Cailíní is a youth-led campaign that empowers young women and girls to support one another in understanding healthy relationships, consent, and how to set boundaries through open and honest conversations.
In Northern Ireland, violence against women and girls is a pervasive issue. A 2023 report revealed that nearly 98% of women surveyed had experienced some form of violence or abuse in their lifetime, with 70% encountering it in the past year. Alarmingly, half of these women had experienced violence before the age of 11. Domestic abuse statistics further highlight the severity of the problem, with the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) reporting over 33,000 domestic abuse incidents in the year ending June 2022 – the highest on record. Women disproportionately bear the brunt, making up 69% of those affected in 2020/21. These figures underline the urgent need for initiatives like Brave Belfast Cailíní.
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The campaign is a collaboration between NSPCC Northern Ireland, Footprints Women’s Centre, and young women aged 12-16. Together, they are developing resources to define what a healthy relationship looks like and explore how young women and girls (or cailíní) can support each other to build a safer, healthier future.
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Healthy relationships are vital for everyone, yet many young people are unsure of what they should look like. This campaign centres young women as the experts of their own experiences, ensuring their voices are at the heart of creating change. By working with young people, Brave Belfast Cailíní helps to foster mutual support and promote a culture where every girl feels valued and respected.
This exhibition celebrates their powerful messages, showcasing artwork and ideas from the young women involved. It highlights how being a “girl’s girl” – supporting and uplifting one another – can transform the lives of young women and girls across Northern Ireland. Visitors will also have the opportunity to create their own artwork, leaving messages of encouragement for young women and girls in the city. Additionally, the exhibition offers information on how to get involved in the campaign and join the movement to build healthier relationships for everyone.
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By promoting healthy relationships and addressing issues like consent and boundaries, Brave Belfast Cailíní aims to challenge the societal norms that perpetuate violence against women and girls. The campaign also aligns with wider efforts to tackle gender-based violence in Northern Ireland, such as Stormont’s Strategy to End Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG), which recognises the need for a comprehensive response to this widespread issue.
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At its core, this campaign is about more than just education – it’s about empowering young women and girls to be agents of change in their own lives and communities. It’s about fostering solidarity, resilience, and the confidence to stand up against unhealthy behaviours. Together, we can create a society where every girl feels supported, understood, and safe.
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To learn more or get involved, please email northernirelandcampaigns@nspcc.org.uk
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24 - 30 MARCH
KNITTING HORN COVERS FOR A MUSKOX & THE BLIND HUMAN AND THE ELEPLANT
Part of Imagine Fesival
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Two stunning new projects from Belfast-based Japanese artist Shiro Masuyama.
Shiro Masuyama is a Japanese artist based in Belfast since 2010. He initially trained as an architect and his practice is based around creating site-specific intervention that connects communities and explores identity. Using his architectural background, he makes projects which fundamentally connect people and society: socially engaged art. His practice relies on travelling and engaging with people all over the world, developing links between the world there and the world here. Over the past ten years part of this has been looking at the effects of industrialisation on traditional ways of life. This exhibition represents 2 new projects from 2023 that are the culmination of this work.
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Knitting horn covers for a muskox is a video work made after a residency period in Alaska and Greenland. The work is the last in a wider series called Self-Sufficient Life that looks at the decline of traditional wool industries. Muskox have survived from the ice-age but are endangered and only native now in the Arctic Circle, though there is a farm in Alaska that breeds them for their fur, Qiviut, the most expensive wool in the world. He spent time with the American muskox farmers in Alaska and then Inuit hunters in Greenland, who hunt muskoxen for food as well as their qiviut. Horns symbolize the wildness of animals; covering a muskox with their own fur is a metaphor for controlling the wild. The project focuses on the relationships between indigenous and immigrant, between wild animals and domesticated animals, between humans and animals, and even humans and nature.
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The Blind Humans and the Elephant was made after residency in New Delhi & Kerala, India. New Delhi is currently known as one of the most polluted cities in the world and the artist experienced the reality of environmental pollution in daily life there. He stayed in Kerala to research both wild elephants and domesticated elephants used for religious festivals as a holy animal. Afterwards, with the help of elephant owners and elephant care takers in Kerala,the artist made a series of videos documenting the elephants crushing various industrial products that are some of the causes of environmental pollution.
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The title refers to the traditional Indian parable of Blind men and an elephant. It’s about a group of blind men who attempt to learn what an elephant is, each touching a different part, and disagreeing on their findings, losing a more comprehensive and accurate understanding.
Both projects question how our identity changes as the rate of industrialisation changes the way of life. Northern Ireland has changed exponentially in the last 20 years with the levels of immigration rising every year. The exhibition will ask what identity means to us and how it can evolve and change as our way of life changes.
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For more information click this link
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week commencing 24th March
monDay 24 March
BRAVE BELFAST CAILÍNÍ: EXHIBITON LAUNCH 4pm-5pm
Part of Imagine Festival
Brave Belfast Cailíní is a youth-led campaign that empowers young women and girls to support one another in understanding healthy relationships, consent, and how to set boundaries through open and honest conversations.
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Free event (donations accepted). Booking required, to book click here
tuesDay 25 March
PROJECT U 10am-1pm
USEL​
Project U is here to help you move closer to employment. If you’re unemployed and facing challenges due to a health condition—big or small—this free program is designed to provide practical, tailored support to overcome those obstacles.
Meeting twice a week in Belfast City Centre, you’ll take part in sessions focused on improving your wellbeing, building employability skills, and preparing for the workplace. You’ll also receive one-to-one guidance to refine your CV, identify job opportunities, and navigate the application process. With additional in-work support available through programs like Workable NI, Project U offers a full-circle approach—helping you get ready for work, secure a job, and stay on track.
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Free event. Drop in.
GRAPEVINE 11am-1pm
Age Friendly Belfast
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The Grapevine is a new drop-in hub for older people.
Come along, get a coffee, and catch up with the latest news and activities for older people in the city. Open 11am-1pm every Tuesday in 2 Royal Avenue.
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Free Event, no booking required just drop in.
VOLUNTEER FAIR 12.30pm-2pm
Age Friendly Belfast
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Aged 55+ and living in Belfast? Join us for an afternoon of information, volunteering, music, dancing, refreshments and much more!​
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Followed by a tea dance from 2pm-4pm, we would love to see you there!
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Free Event, no booking required just drop in.
MARCH TEA DANCE 2pm-4pm
Age Friendly Belfast
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Enjoy an afternoon of music and dancing at the Tea Dance in 2 Royal Avenue!
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Featuring live music from Rosie Hunter and delicious refreshments provided by our in house caterer, Yallaa Café.
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Pop your dancing shoes on and dance the day away to all your favourite hits, in partnership with Age Friendly Belfast.
Free Event, no booking required just drop in.
wednesDay 26 March
PROJECT U 10am-1pm
USEL​
Project U is here to help you move closer to employment. If you’re unemployed and facing challenges due to a health condition—big or small—this free program is designed to provide practical, tailored support to overcome those obstacles.
Meeting twice a week in Belfast City Centre, you’ll take part in sessions focused on improving your wellbeing, building employability skills, and preparing for the workplace. You’ll also receive one-to-one guidance to refine your CV, identify job opportunities, and navigate the application process. With additional in-work support available through programs like Workable NI, Project U offers a full-circle approach—helping you get ready for work, secure a job, and stay on track.
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Free event. Drop in.
SOS LOIN, BEAL FEIRSTE 12pm-2pm
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[ENGLISH BELOW]
Beir leat do lón féin agus bí ag labhairt Gaeilge i gcroílár Bhéal Feirste le linn am lóin.
Is teacht le chéile réidh é an Sos Lóin mar a bhfuil fáilte roimh dhuine ar bith ar mhaith leis Gaeilge a labhairt ar a shuaimhneas.
Cibé cé acu atá tú ag obair i lár an bhaile nó i mbun siopadóireachta nó eile, buail isteach chugainn agus déan do chomhrá ar feadh tamaill.
Bíonn an Sos Lóin ar siúl gach re Céadaoin in 2 Ascaill Ríoga idir 12.00 agus 14.00 agus is iad na chéad dátaí eile ná: Dé Céadaoin an 2, an 16 agus an 30 Deireadh Fómhair.
Is imeacht saor in aisce é seo. Le tuilleadh eolais a fháil, seol ríomhphost chuig sosloinbealfeirste@gmail.com
Bring your own lunch and speak Irish in the heart of Belfast over lunch time.
The Sos Lóin is an informal meet-up where anyone who wants to speak Irish at their ease is welcome.
Whether you are working in the town centre, shopping or otherwise, call in and chat a while.
The Sos Lóin is on every other Wednesday in 2 Royal Avenue between 12.00 and 14.00 and upcoming dates are: Wednesday the 2nd, 16th and 30th of October.
This is a free event. For more information, please e-mail sosloinbealfeirste@gmail.com
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Free event. Drop in.
thursDay 27 march
IMPROV GROUP DRAWING 10.30am-2pm
Art Is Collective / Part of Imagine Festival​
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Loosen up your creativity and and join our multi-ability group of artists to work on a large scale improv drawing.
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Join Art is Collective, a weekly multi-ability group of artists, to work on a large scale improv drawing. Loosen up your creativity and see where it goes. Materials provided or bring your own!
Free event. Booking required, to book click here
IMPRISONED IMAGINATION EXHIBITION TOUR 1pm-2pm
Prison Arts Foundation
Enjoy a guided tour of the Imprisoned Imagination Exhibition and immerse yourself in this transformative experience. Explore how art can transcend confinement, challenge perceptions, and inspire change through the voices and stories of imprisoned individuals.
This inspiring exhibition showcases art, music, and writing created by individuals incarcerated in Northern Ireland’s prisons: Maghaberry, Magilligan, and Hydebank Wood College & Women’s Prison.
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Curated from Prison Arts Foundation’s workshops, the exhibition features thought-provoking works, including the powerful poem For Those Who Judge. Each piece reflects the incredible resilience, imagination, and human spirit of those behind bars, offering a raw and authentic perspective.​
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Free event. Booking required, to book click here
REFLECTION 2pm-4pm
Tommy Dunlop / Part of Imagine Festival​
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Long-term Art is Collective member Tommy Dunlop discusses his latest artwork based on his recovery from living on the streets.
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Join Tommy Dunlop, a long term Art is Collective member and citizen of Belfast, to discuss his latest artwork Reflection, based on his recovery from living on the streets to spending the summer in Belfast School of Art studios painting for the summer.
Free event. Booking required, to book click here
PORTRAIT/LIFE DRAWING 2pm-4pm
Prison Arts Foundation
As part of PAF’s Imprisoned Imagination exhibition, join Artist-in-Residence Stephen Greer for an exclusive Masterclass.
This immersive session will guide participants through techniques for capturing the human form, focusing on the intricacies of portraiture and the expressive power of the figure. With expert guidance from Stephen, you’ll explore various drawing methods while developing your skills in portraying emotion, light, and anatomy.
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Stephen, known for his work in both fine art and prison art workshops, brings a unique perspective to life drawing. His personal experience as a former prisoner, combined with his work with incarcerated individuals, adds depth and authenticity to his teaching, creating a masterclass that goes beyond traditional art instruction.
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Whether you're an experienced artist or a beginner, this masterclass will provide a thought-provoking, creative environment to explore the art of portraiture while engaging with the powerful themes of resilience and the human spirit present in the Imprisoned Imagination exhibition.
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Spaces are limited, so book your place today and immerse yourself in this transformative artistic experience!
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Free event. Booking required, to book click here
FriDay 28 march
PEOPLE, PLANET, PASTRY 10.30am-12pm
Small 99​
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If you’re interested or curious about sustainability, come along to the People, Planet, Pastry event to meet like-minded business owners who are taking action on sustainability. Learn about what is going on locally, share insights on how to overcome barriers and make new friends!
This relaxed and informal event brings people together to learn more about sustainability and take action.
Free event. Booking required, to book click here
saturDay 29 march
THREAD OF SOLIDARITY WORKSHOP 11am-5pm
Plot Twist Craftivism​
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More information to follow.
Free event. No booking required.
sunDay 30 march
SUNDAY CHESS 2pm-5pm
Roaming Knights​
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Belfast City Chess meet up. This is a free weekly social meet up for chess players. It is not a chess club, or tournament. Under 16s must be accompanied by responsible adult.
Free event. Contact roamingknightsni@gmail.com for more info.
