The Dublin Community Blog

On Saturday I walked through St Stephens Green and it struck me that this is the last Autumn for this part of the Green.

By October next year these trees will have been removed to make room for the new Metro station. Personally in post Celtic Tiger Ireland I don’t see the need for the Metro or how we can afford it both financially and spiritually, The Green is the heart of the city center and no cost benefit analysis can measure that. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not someone who could be described as a “tree hugger” or “anti-progress” but I do believe that sometimes you cannot justify destroying something as beautiful as St Stephens Green in the name of progress.

The developers promise to restore the Green to its former condition after the building has finished. I was part of a group that met with the RPA lately and the plans for St Stephens Green were discussed. In fairness to them I believe they do mean well and do intend to preserve as much of the Green as possible. A lot of effort is going into documenting the current layout and structure of the Green so that everything can be put back to the exact spot where it was prior to the construction work but the trees will have to go and there is nothing that can be done about that. New trees will be planted and even semi mature ones could be moved into the Green but no matter how much effort they put into replacing stones and railings it still takes 200 years to fully restore a 200 year old park.

I took myself and my three children along to the RHA Gallagher Gallery on Ely Place (map) to check out their annual exhibition. It runs until 31st July and I would recommend that you get yourself along to it. It’s a hop, skip and a jump from Stephen’s Green so we combined our visit with a picnic in the park. (This was originally supposed to be a playground post but the playground in Stephen’s Green is closed for refurbishment but looks like it will be ace!)

To be honest my visit to the exhibition was kind of a duty: my brother, Blaise Smith, and brother-in-law, John O’Reilly, both have paintings on display. The painting right is by  the brother in law.

That’s the thing about the RHA Annnual exhibition: if you know any Irish artists chances are you will see some of their work exhibited here. It’s a great opportunity to see the work of up-and-coming or established artists. I am the farthest thing from an art critic. I look at the paintings and think about what they make me think about. I like this or that because the colours appeal to me or it evokes memories or reminds me of a person, place or thing. Some paintings I enjoy because they make me smile or conjure up other emotions. I have a very rudimentary art history education so I won’t even attempt to review the exhibition in those terms but as a way to spend an afternoon in Dublin you could do a lot worse. You are bound to see something that will make you melt inside, raise your hackles or that will feature in your dreams or nightmares. All types of materials are used and while painting features heavily there are also prints, photography, sculpture, architecture and even one brooch featured! The refurbished gallery is a beautiful exhibition space (it’s probably been refurbished for ages but y’know I don’t get out much!) It was a fine way to spend the afternoon with two lively under 7s and there was no difficulty getting the buggy around and up and down.

My husband was very glad when I told him I didn’t get a catalogue and buy any paintings but if you are looking to invest in some work this is a great place to pick up some iconic Irish art as many of the items are for sale. I hadn’t planned to write a blog post about the exhibition so while I know which items would be my top five I can’t remember all the details. I do plan to go back so I might take notes next time!

180th Annual Exhibition, Opening hours:
The RHA Gallery will revert to opening ALL Exhibition AREAS, 7 days a week, for the 180th Annual Exhibition, from 24 May – 30 July.
Monday & Tuesday 11 – 5pm
Wednesday – Saturday 11 – 7pm
Sunday 2 – 5pm

As a mammy-ish aside I also note that the RHA run children’s workshops throughout the year. My older son was very interested in the exhibition so I’m off to book him into the workshop that focuses on the exhibtion.

Just a quick post to remind everyone that Peoples Photography 2009 is on tomorrow and Sunday around St Stephens Green. The People’s Photography Exhibition is a unique opportunity to enjoy a showcase of striking images in a relaxed atmosphere in the heart of Dublin city. This summer’s event features a diverse selection of work from enthusiasts, clubs and international award winning professionals. Themes on display include landscape, monochrome, photojournalism, portraiture, creative, nature, analogue, digital and abstract. The originality and creativeness of the many imaginative displays will be greatly appreciated not only by those looking for a fun day out with a great atmosphere in the city but also by anyone who has a keen eye for all things arty. This exhibition is the ideal option to do something different at the weekend and what’s even better, it benefits good causes.

I’ll be taking part again this year so if you are in town on Saturday or Sunday call over to space 70 and say hello.

I WAS picking up some late night shopping late last week in St Stephen’s Green shopping centre when I stumbled across their 20th birthday celebrations involving a lazer light show. I can’t believe it is that long since it opened, I remember when it was all new and shiny.

Unfortunately their website doesn’t have any details of the birthday but I managed to grab a few snaps.

Once again St Stephen’s Green is host to an outdoor photographic exhibition this time featuring photographs of Polish wildlife by Artur Tabor. There was a previous outdoor gallery held last year in the park and from what I can gather it was very popular with visitors to the park so it is well worth a visit.  This year’s exhibition was officially opened at the end of last week and will run until September 6th. You can find out more information about the exhibit on the website. Meanwhile here is some of what you can expect.