The Minister made his remarks during a visit to Kilcooley Estate in Bangor this morning when he unveiled a landmark sculpture depicting memories and images of five decades in the life of the estate.
He said: “Across Northern Ireland creative community arts and cultural projects are making a real difference to the landscape of many housing estates and streets and helping us to move forward as a society.
“Partnership projects such as this one, designed and led by local community groups and created by professional artists, are making a real difference. They are helping to restore pride in an area and are improving the quality of life for those living there.”
The sculpture on Drumhirk Drive can be easily seen from Bangor’s ring road and is a series of five oak obelisks with local images embedded on to them. It was created under the Art of Regeneration Project which aims to address the legacy of conflict, build on the peace process and tackle the problems of anti-social graffiti and paramilitary murals.
The Minister continued: “My congratulations go to the Co-ordinator of the Project, Lesley Cherry and to artist Lucy Turner who have been backed by a number of funding partners to create this interesting landmark.
“My thanks to the partners who have made this possible including, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Department of Social Development's Neighbourhood Renewal Scheme, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, North Down Local Strategy Partnership and North Down Council.”
Notes to Editors:
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