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Preserving Artistic Legacy

A shorter version of this article was published in the Visual Artists’ News Sheet | March – April 2025

Inside the BIFPA Archive: Clare Lymer outlines NIVAL’s recent acquisition of the Belfast International Festival of Performance Art Archive.

In a significant move for preserving Northern Ireland’s performance art history, the National Irish Visual Arts Library (NIVAL) has secured the archive of the Belfast International Festival of Performance Art (BIFPA). This acquisition safeguards invaluable insights into the country’s performance art heritage, offering future generations of artists, researchers, and the general public unprecedented access to a wealth of material documenting over a decade of boundary-pushing performances.

As NIVAL’s Digital Collections Officer, working with the BIFPA archive was both a privilege and a challenge. Performance art, by its ephemeral nature, is difficult to preserve, leaving a noticeable gap in Irish collections. The BIFPA archive, currently spanning from 2010 to 2024, counters this ephemerality with over 6,000 images and 400 videos of more than 200 performances. This extensive collection bridges past and present, offering a rare resource documenting the evolution of this dynamic art form.

During my initial appraisal, I was struck by the contrast between the bold energy of some performances and the quiet introspection of others.  At NIVAL, we often refer to “pulling threads” and “falling down rabbit holes” when navigating archives. My role is to support and facilitate research, not to dive into it myself – yet, as I sifted through thousands of images and videos, my curiosity grew. I often thought, “What on Earth is happening here?“… quickly followed by, “Stay focused, come back to it later.”

That discipline faltered when I reached a folder labeled ‘Christoff Gillen’.

The first images showed artist Gillen in a black suit and a rainbow-striped umbrella hat, crouched on the pavement, chalking the word ‘LOVE’ in bright colours. Then, a jarring image – Gillen now standing, encircled by two police officers and two City Council wardens. The tension in the scene hinted at a story too compelling to ignore.

A quick search confirmed it was documentation of Christoff Gillen’s 2015 work, A Thousand and One Kisses, a performance that made headlines. Gillen set out to create a ‘rainbow of love’ on Belfast’s pavements to highlight LGBTQ+ rights and marriage equality. The performance however was disrupted when a passerby became hostile, and a Belfast City Council warden issued Gillen a fine for graffiti. The artist’s solicitor argued that the act was a form of expression rather than vandalism and the council ultimately waived the fine, provided Gillen consulted them about future performances on public property.

Highlighting tensions that can arise when performance art challenges societal norms and regulations, this and other BIFPA performances demonstrate the importance of boundary exploration to encourage dialogue. The BIFPA archive preserves these bold artistic provocations in vivid detail. 

  • A person in a black suit wears a rainbow-striped umbrella hat while crouched on a pavement. They have a plastic container of coloured chalk sticks. Belfast City Council building can be seen in the background.
  • A person in a black suit wearing a rainbow-striped umbrella hat is encircled by two police officers and two city council wardens on a busy city street. One of the wardens is writing details down.
  • A person in a black suit wearing a rainbow-striped umbrella hat and pulling a black wheelie suitcase walks down a busy street with another person.

Founded by artist, lecturer, and curator Brian Connolly, BIFPA was established as an independent annual festival within the Ulster University in 2013. Dedicated to creating innovative performance works, it brought together international, national, and local artists, alongside emerging talent from Ulster University’s Belfast School of Art. BIFPA became a vital platform for experimental work, with performances that challenged traditional notions of visual arts and creative expression.

Connolly’s vision, supported by other key figures such as Alastair MacLennan, Sandra Johnston, and the Bbeyond collective, significantly shaped Northern Ireland’s artistic landscape. Fostering collaboration and innovation they created a support network that continues to thrive. The BIFPA archive stands as a testament to their efforts, preserving artists’ legacies while providing a comprehensive resource for future scholarship and creative exploration. Contemporary artists can draw inspiration from its rich documentation, and researchers can engage with primary source material to investigate the intersections of performance art with social and political movements. As the archive grows under NIVAL’s stewardship, it will have a lasting impact on the future of performance art in Ireland, ensuring these legacies inspire and influence new generations of creators.

A person in a pink onesie uses a large funnel as a loudspeaker at a display, surrounded by pink string and balloons. An audience is seated nearby.

Working with the BIFPA archive was a reminder of the stories hidden in every collection, in this instance a narrative of creative defiance and exploration waiting to be uncovered and shared. Gillen’s act of chalking ‘LOVE’ on Belfast’s streets was as much a call for inclusivity as it was an artistic statement, and its preservation ensures that such moments of courage are not lost to history. These preserved moments of Northern Ireland’s performance art legacy can inspire, challenge, and connect us all.

In 2024, to mark its 175th anniversary, the Belfast School of Art announced a partnership with the National College of Art and Design (NCAD). This collaboration highlights the importance of fostering innovation and knowledge exchange across institutions in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Alongside NIVAL’s acquisition of the BIFPA archive, these initiatives underscore the value of cross-border cultural preservation and educational collaboration, enriching Ireland’s artistic and academic landscape.

NIVAL’s commitment to providing free access to its collections ensures that the BIFPA archive remains open for exploration, education, and research. Selected materials are accessible online through NIVAL’s digital catalogue and the full archive can be accessed in the NIVAL Reading Room. Within its thousands of images and videos are stories of artists pushing boundaries and sparking vital conversations. Sometimes it takes just one image to pull that thread and reveal a story that demands to be told.

A person in a green dress walks barefoot on a wet street while holding a pair of children's boots, one in each hand, by the laces.
A group of people engaged in a theatrical or performance art piece. A man in a red shirt is holding a woman who appears to be in a dramatic pose, her body bent backward. Others around them are interacting physically, creating a dynamic and intense scene. The background features an indoor space with an audience watching
A person is lying on the ground with their eyes closed. They are surrounded by a fluffy substance that looks like small downy feathers. The feathers are on the ground and also in the person's hair and clothing, there is a peaceful atmosphere.
A person in a black suit wears a rainbow-striped umbrella hat while crouched on a pavement. They have a plastic container of coloured chalk sticks. Belfast City Council building can be seen in the background.
A person in a black suit wearing a rainbow-striped umbrella hat is encircled by two police officers and two city council wardens on a busy city street. One of the wardens is writing details down.
A person in a black suit wearing a rainbow-striped umbrella hat and pulling a black wheelie suitcase walks down a busy street with another person.
A person uses a large wooden stick with nails sticking out of it to smash a table. The table has a black cloth and some objects on it. A seated audience watches close-by, with one person filming the performance. There are large windows in the background looking out to the street where a pink double decker bus can be seen.
A circle of people standing around a table each hold a length of red ribbon connecting them to a wire basket placed on the table top. The wire basket contains eggs, their is a black cloth and other objects on the table.
A person walks across a street in a long black coat that is pinned with many items such as paper with drawings and latex gloves. This person is wearing a medical face mask. An onlooker on a bike looks back towards this person as they have just walked passed them. The onlooker has pink hair and pink trousers. There is a street sign in the background that reads 'Donegall Street'
A person in a long black coat that is pinned with many items such as paper with drawings and latex gloves stands at a street crossing waiting for the pedestrian lights. This person is wearing a medical face mask. An onlooker beside is wearing a hoodie and smoking a cigarette. The onlooker seems curious about the person standing beside them. There is a sense of bewilderment and amusement in the photo.
A person in a pink onesie uses a large funnel as a loudspeaker at a display, surrounded by pink string and balloons. An audience is seated nearby.
A person in a dark hoodie stands behind a glass door, their face covered with a crumpled sheet of aluminum foil. Other individuals are working in the background, involved in what seems like an installation or performance, with some using ladders and materials. The setting appears to be an indoor public space with large windows letting in natural light.
A group of people walk outside in a line, one behind the other. Each person has a covering over their eyes except for the person at the front leading them and the person at the back. Each person places their hands on the shoulder of the person in front of them to guide them.
Two individuals interact closely— they each hold a lit candle in their hands, creating a solemn and contemplative atmosphere. One person hovers their palm over the flame of the other person's candle. The dim lighting and the glow of the candles add to the emotional depth of the scene.
Two individuals in an intimate pose—one person, wearing a black shirt, embraces another person, who is also holding them closely. They each hold a lit candle in their hands, creating a solemn and contemplative atmosphere. The dim lighting and the glow of the candles add to the emotional depth of the scene.

Click on carousel images for caption details.

The BIFPA archive was deposited in NIVAL in 2024 by Brian Connolly and his fellow BIFPA Committee Members: Sandra Johnston, Siobhán Mullen, Zara Lyness, Thomas Wells, Sinéad O’Donnell, and Brian Patterson. A special thank you to Brian Connolly and Zara Lyness for their time and invaluable insights during the deposit and cataloguing process. Their dedication, along with the extensive work already completed before the archive’s deposit, has been instrumental in preserving and contextualising this important collection.

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