Open House Dublin expands into Fingal with an exciting line-up of events on 14-16th October

Expert-led tours of the innovative Fingal County Hall (designed by Bucholz McEvoy Architects with Building Design Partnership) and behind-the-scenes access to the conservation works at Swords Castle and Malahide Castle are among the highlights of this year’s Open House Dublin, the Irish Architecture Foundation’s flagship annual festival, which this year is expanding into Fingal for the first time.

Tours of Swords Castle will explain the five-year conservation works carried out by Fingal County Council’s Architects Department, and there will also be tours of Casino Model Railway Museum in Malahide. Open House Dublin will additionally feature tours of private houses, including a 1970s semi-detached house in Balbriggan, reimagined by Islander Architects.

The festival will take place across Dublin city and county, including Fingal, from 14th to 16th October. Open House Dublin will host more than 150 free events in more than 100 sites across the city and county over three days. There are historical and contemporary tours of iconic buildings, private homes, exemplary social housing projects, public spaces and parks, all led by expert guides.

You can drop in to film screenings and exhibitions, two of which feature houses in Fingal. You can also join boat tours of Dublin Port, as well as cycling and walking tours, and you can even experience a site-specific theatre performance about family history and brutalist architecture. With special events and activities for young people and families, there really is something for everyone.

Exciting new additions to the festival include the tours in Fingal; tours of Dublin’s highest office space, the Exo Building, designed by Shay Cleary Architects and MCA Architects; tours of the new Ropemaker Place and Sorting Office urban quarter in Dublin’s Docklands designed by architects Henry J Lyons; and tours led by DLR Architects of the new Dún Laoghaire Baths.

Further highlights of this year’s Open House Dublin include:

• The Big Debate, which will discuss what the future holds for Dublin’s built environment. Taking place on the 14th October at The Science Gallery Dublin, Naughton Institute, Trinity College Dublin, the debate will be hosted by architect and presenter Róisín Murphy and will include architect Valerie Mulvin, Francis Doherty of Peter McVerry Trust, poet Hazel Hogan, documentary producer Geoff Power and journalist Laoise Neylon.
• Housing Unlocked, a joint initiative between the IAF and the Housing Agency, will officially open during Open House Dublin. Eight ground-breaking ideas will be put on display at an exhibition in The Science Gallery Dublin, Naughton Institute, Trinity College Dublin, developed by forward-thinking teams who are keen to improve Ireland’s housing supply. Could modular homes or repurposing empty churches, vacant shop units and closed banks be the answer?
• Open House Dublin Junior will offer young people and families the chance to get up close with architecture through workshops and activities at the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the National Museum and the Chester Beatty Library. Families can also embark on self-guided Architreks tours designed by architects.
• The Site Specific Film Series, a programme of short documentaries commissioned by the IAF during the pandemic, will explore the personalities, processes, complexity, creativity and transformative impact that surround the act of designed space. The 17 films will be screened in Meeting House Square, Temple Bar on the Friday and Saturday night during the festival. 

Nathalie Weadick, Director of the Irish Architecture Foundation, said: “This year, we are delighted to expand the Open House Dublin programme of events into Fingal, which is an area steeped in history and heritage, as well as contemporary development. The festival will be lifting the lid on buildings in Dublin city and county, including in Fingal, opening up spaces and places that are rarely accessible to the public, as well as celebrating all that’s good about Irish architecture. There are lots of exciting events for families and children, too. We invite everyone to join us to get up-close with Dublin’s architecture this October.”

AnnMarie Farrelly, Chief Executive of Fingal County Council, said the council were delighted to be a sponsor of Open House Dublin this year: “We are very proud of our involvement with this fantastic festival as it gives us an opportunity to showcase Fingal’s unique and rich architectural heritage to residents and visitors. We are especially delighted to be able to welcome people to County Hall in Swords for a behind-the-scenes tour of our key local government building in the county capital.”

The IAF and Open House Dublin are delighted to partner with Peter McVerry Trust this year and visitors to Open House can make a donation to the trust via the Open House Dublin website.

All Open House Dublin events are free, but booking is required for some.  The full programme can be found at openhousedublin.com.