Paper short abstract:

How is Belfast City Hall, site of protests, riots, festivals, markets, marriages, and more, perceived by the people of Belfast? This paper will explore understandings of place and belonging in Belfast, through the specific and multifaceted site of City Hall.

Paper long abstract:

This paper focuses on Belfast City Hall as the locus of important place- and identity-making activity in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The site will be addressed through architecture and monuments, materiality, and as an aide-mémoire for those who have witnessed important events there. Drawing on theories of social space and landscape, this paper explores the meanings and implications of the building at the physical center of Belfast, and asks the questions "How is Belfast City Hall, site of protests, explosions, festivals, markets, marriages, and more, perceived by the people of Belfast?" and "What role does that play in their understandings of place and belonging?"