Tandem

Famous Faces in
Belfast City Hall

The ‘No Mean City’ Exhibition is a celebration of the famous faces either from or associated with Belfast over the last 100 years. ‘No Mean City’ was a Belfast City Council project that previously existed as a temporary exhibition within the City Hall before it was closed for refurbishment.

After we were contracted to design the interpretation and branding of the Coffee Shop space in the City Hall, Tandem were briefed to design a permanent exhibition space for ‘No Mean City' in a small room just off the 'Waking a Giant' exhibition. We felt the original exhibition didn’t do justice to the world class photographic portraits, so we recommended some new additions and selected the final 68 portraits that make up the striking picture wall, choosing people from a broad and diverse range of disciplines and backgrounds.

The end result is a visually stunning exhibition complete with an interactive facility, which utilises touchscreens to tell the story of each of the subjects who range from sporting stars and singers to artists and poets. We were careful to position the two touchscreens at different heights compliant with disability regulations and ensure that this exhibition would be accessible to all. In the centre of the room is a panel that features information on the 'People’s Choice', Joe Kavanagh, and we've also included a blank space among the photos so that visitors can stop to think about the next successful son or daughter of the city who will grace the same wall in the future.

Scope

Allocating and prioritising budget to various and most appropriate delivery mechanisms

Image selection

Design of space and interpretation

Lighting & colour scheme consultation