Have you been the the new Thursday Lates in The National Gallery?

As part of their ‘Thursday Lates’ initiative you can now visit The National Gallery on a Thursday eve as it’s open until 8.30.

The idea behind this is to encourage people to visit the Gallery, as with 9-5 working hours for most it’s difficult to visit mid-week. Harnessing the already busy city centre on a Thursday evening is clever as it’s an alternative to spending money (our National Galleries are free) and there is no competing with a trip to the pub on a Friday night.

So what’s on offer?

In the main courtyard there’s a DJ, as well as food and drinks. Tropical Popical also have a pop-up there with free nail painting. Make sure to book in advance though as with only a few slots they’re gone in a flash. Their genius nail artists take inspiration from many of the current exhibitions so you can literally leave with works of art on your nails, in miniature. See below for some of their latest.

Entertainment

There is lots of entertainment happening around the gallery each week, this Thursday it was a spoken word performance from Stephen James Smith. This was commissioned by the gallery to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Caravaggio’s The Taking of the Christ being unveiled. The painting is a big draw for the Gallery as it was infamously found in a dining room on Leeson Street in 1990. Performance art, dancing and live music are also scheduled over the coming weeks and there are free tours of the permanent collection on offer from 6.30pm every Thursday evening.

For January

Payday still feels a long way off this month – seriously January feels about 7 weeks long– so what better time for a visit? Highlights this month are the Turner exhibition, which showcases a collection of the Impressionists painters watercolours. Donated to The National Gallery by Henry Vaughan, he requested that they be shown for free every January when the light is at it’s dimmest. This was to ensure the paintings would not fade and their vibrancy is preserved, it makes for a great way to brighten up a dull winter’s evening.

 

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We ?? January, because January means Turner here at the National Gallery of Ireland! It’s a beautiful annual tradition, in keeping with the wishes of collector Henry Vaughan who bequeathed 31 watercolours and drawings by Turner to us in 1900with the stipulation that they only be shown in January, when the light is at its weakest. You can see them in our Print Gallery until the last day of January, and admission is entirely free! #turner #light #january

A post shared by National Gallery of Ireland (@nationalgalleryofireland) on Jan 9, 2019 at 3:07pm PST

Also be sure to check out the exhibition Markievicz: Portraits and Propaganda on until the 10th of February to coincide with the centenary of Markievicz’s election to the British Parliament, she was the first woman to do so. Although a small collection of pieces, it has some of her own paintings, many of which were created whilst she was in prison. There are some great photographs of her on display, in full military dress, some great style inspiration to be had for 2019!

 

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On the centenary of the parliamentary vote for women in Ireland, and the election of Constance Markievicz as the first woman to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, we have invited @amandacooganartist to create a new artwork here at the National Gallery of Ireland. Floats in the Aether is an ambitious, large-scale performance comprising a series of events involving over 100 women and girls of different backgrounds and social contexts. In each event, Coogan will lead a silent, slow-moving, choreographed procession through the historic rooms of the National Gallery. The first performance will be a solo performance by Amanda Coogan, and will take place tomorrow (Tuesday) from 2.30pm – 4.30pm in the Gallery. All welcome. More details in link in bio.

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Make sure to spread the word and bring people along with you. We need to support our National Galleries, especially when they are running exciting and innovative evenings such as these.

Header photo: @alandub10