The vision of the Irish Georgian Society is to conserve, protect and foster a keen interest and a respect for Ireland’s architectural heritage and decorative arts. These aims are achieved through its scholarly and conservation education programmes, through its support of conservation projects and planning issues, and vitally, through its members and their activities.
2016 Desmond Guinness Scholarship
05.12.2016
Posted by IGS
Dr. Nicola Gordon Bowe with Desmond Guinness Scholarship Recipients Aisling Durken (Winner) and Fidelma Mullane (Highly Commended)
The 2016 Desmond Guinness Scholarship was awarded to Aisling Durkan for her study on Provincial Splendour and Mercantile Ambition: The Drogheda town house in the eighteenth century. A commendation was also given to Fidelma Mullane on her work on traditional and vernacular crafts. The award was presented by Dr. Nicola Gordon Bowe, representing the Desmond Guinness Scholarship committee.
Your gift will not only provide someone with a year’s full calendar of events to enjoy, but will provide a unique way to support the Irish Georgian Society. The recipient will also receive an event voucher for two lectures in our Winter/Spring 2017 lecture series.
Our lectures for 2017 include Lutyens and Lambay - Lecture with Dr. Matthew Jebb, Thomas Roberts (1748-1777) and His Patrons: A Tour of Georgian Ireland– Lecture with William Laffan, 'From jangling steeples to hill-rimmed houses: The Buildings of South Ulster' – Lecture with Kevin V. Mulligan and Dublin’s music under the Georges – Lecture with Adrian Le Harivel.
Ring the Irish Georgian Society on +353 (0)1 679 8675 to organise your gift.
**This offer is applicable only to Memberships valued at €60 and above. This offer is valid on Gift Memberships purchased up to 19th December 2016.**
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The Irish Georgian Society has launched a capital campaign to raise €600,000 to complete the restoration of the City Assembly House. €900,000 has been pledged so far through the support of Dublin City Council, and the US based Jerome L. Greene Foundation and Gilbert & Ildiko Butler Family Foundation.
We are appealing directly to our friends and membership in Ireland, the UK and the USA to raise the €600,000 required to reach our overall target of €1.5m which will allow us to commence the final phase of works on the building. All donors will be recognised on our Donors board displayed in the City Assembly House.
Works are scheduled to commence in early 2017 which will see the restoration of the great octagonal Exhibition Room, the provision of services to ensure the building will be accessible to everyone, and the preparation of a lettable space to generate sustainable income for the building.
Campaign updates: 17th February 2017: We are delighted to announce that the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs have awarded the City Assembly House €90,000 in funding under the Arts and Culture Capital Scheme 2016-2018. This money will be used to fund the installation of a wheelchair accessible lift and a secondary staircase to serve as fire escape route, which will make the building accessible to all! With €1.15million raised so far, we are 77% of the way toward reaching our goal of €1.5million!
Thank you to all our supporters who have donated over €21,000 in Ireland and $150,000 in the US toward our campaign since October 2016.
Vision for the City Assembly House
The Society’s ambition in restoring the City Assembly House is to revitalise a building of national architectural, cultural, and historical importance and to reach a wider audience in fulfilling our mission to promote and protect Ireland’s architectural heritage and decorative arts. The most exciting part of this final phase of works will see the refurbishment of the Knight of Glin Exhibition Room so that it can accommodate an Annual Exhibition, as well as an annual cultural programme of art and photographic exhibitions, musical performances, and lectures.
Progress to date
In 2013, the Irish Georgian Society completed the first phase of its restoration of the City Assembly House and moved into the building which now serves as our headquarters. The first phase of works focused on the rooms to the front of the building. On the ground floor the entrance hall has been refurbished and to either side a public office and small gallery have opened. The stairhall has been transformed through the cleaning and repair of rococo plasterwork by skilled stuccodores, and the repair of the balustrades and banisters of the staircase. On the first floor, in the Daniel O’Connell Room, works included the cleaning of decorative plasterwork, the installation of a dove grey Carrara marble chimneypiece, and the provision of brass picture rails. The top floor has been refurbished as working offices for the Society.
City Assembly House – Phase 2
In completing the restoration of the City Assembly house, the Society will undertake the following works:
The full restoration of the Knight of Glin Exhibition Room as an exhibition and performance space.
The provision of universal access to include a new lift that will service the basement, ground floor and Exhibition Room.
The provision of a secondary fire escape route to allow an increase in visitor capacity.
The restoration of the front and side elevations of the building and repair works to its roof.
The creation of a lettable space to provide a sustainable source of income.
History of the City Assembly House
The City Assembly House was built by the Society of Artists in Ireland between 1766 and 1771 with the aim of promoting the work of Irish artists and providing an academy for the arts. At that time it was the first purpose-built public art gallery in either Britain or Ireland and possibly in Europe. The Society of Artists of Ireland ceased activity before the end of the 18th century but its former home continued to occupy a pivotal place in Dublin’s civic life. During the 19th century it was first home to Dublin Corporation whose members met in the octagonal room, and was later used as a courthouse. In 1952 a new Civic Museum was opened in the building and continued until its closure in 2003. For the next ten years it remained empty until it became the focus of the Irish Georgian Society’s restoration programme.
How you can help us achieve our €600,000 target
There are for easy ways to make a donation!
Through the support of the Jerome L Greene Foundation and additional sponsorship and grants from The Ireland Funds and Dublin City Council, the Irish Georgian Society has been able to pursue one of the core projects in its revitalisation of the building: the reinstatement of Georgian-type windows and the cleaning and repointing of the historic brick and stone work of the front facade. Completed in early November 2016, the project has brought about a transformational change to one of Dublin’s most significant eighteenth-century buildings and has significantly enhanced the character of the associated streetscape.
Reinstatement of Georgian-type windows
The reinstatement of Georgian-type windows to the City Assembly House in place of late 19th/early 20th century plate glass windows has successfully restored the intended fenestration of the building’s front and side elevations. The Society gave careful consideration to this project judging that the plate glass windows significantly detracted from the visual appeal of the building through failing to sustain the contrasting rhythm between the horizontally proportioned bricks and the original vertical proportions of the fenestration. In resolving to replace them, survey drawings and details of windows from Charlemont House were used that had been prepared by David Griffin of the Irish Architectural Archive. Charlemont House was built in 1763 and so is a contemporary of the City Assembly House, which dates to 1766. The same details were used when replacing the windows in No. 85 St Stephen’s Green and No. 20 Lower Dominick Street. Reference was also made to the 1795 Malton View of Powerscourt House which illustrates a portion of the City Assembly House.
Re-pointing the façade
Following a programme of works that started in June, scaffolding has now been removed from the City Assembly House revealing the building in all its glory. The works programme involved the re-pointing of brickwork using wigging pointing as well as the repointing and repair of damaged stone work. This project was undertaken so as to remove cement pointing that was applied in the 1950s which had caused the spalling of the fabric of the façade and which left a dreary elevation that belies the great interest of the building’s interiors. Failing to address this issue would have resulted in the continued deterioration of brick and stone work and exacerbated future repair needs. Urgent repair works were also carried out to replace lead flashing above the windows, over the doorcase, and on the parapet so as to halt water ingress. The work was undertaken by Nolan Group Stone Brick Restoration which has also been a generous sponsor of this part of the City Assembly House project.
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