Borough’s best in the frame for art project

TRIART (Three Really Interesting Artists Rally Together) ran the live art ‘People’s Painting’ project in December at Carrick Civic Centre.

The group, comprised of artists Joanne Campbell, Steve Diamond and Michael Sparkes, invited members of the public to join in the venture by requesting or making an addition to the painting in return for a charity donation of £5.

The resulting artwork is a series of four canvasses, depicting some of Carrick’s most well-known landmarks.

These include the castle, the North Gate and St Nicholas’ Church to more recent additions like the Knockagh War Memorial and Marine Gardens.

Some of the borough’s higher profile events also feature in one of the pieces, from a flypast by the Red Arrows during Armed Forces Day 2013 to the Giro d’Italia celebrations in May last year.

With Carrickfergus set to merge with Larne and Ballymena this spring to become Mid and East Antrim District Council, the People’s Painting initiative aims to capture the legacy of the outgoing authority.

Joanne Campbell explained: “We wanted the paintings to mark the last Carrickfergus Council, so we’ve tried to include something from every part of the borough.

“We had a great response during the two days we were in the Civic Centre; there were plenty of people who came up and made suggestions over what should be in the paintings.

“There are some parts that are still being finished off so when that’s done, we’ll hopefully find somewhere where all four paintings can be hung together.”

The project also saw sponsorship from a number of businesses and clubs, many of whom have their names or logos included on canvas.

A total of £129 was raised from the initiative, which will go towards the mayor’s nominated charity, Carrickfergus Action Cancer group.

TRIART members presented a cheque to Mayoress Patricia Johnston on Thursday morning.