Buildings across Dublin attracted over 30,000 visits from interested members of the public this weekend, as the annual Open House architectural festival saw iconic landmarks, historic houses and private homes throw open their doors.
This included over 120 buildings across the capital that participated in Open House, which is organised each year by the Irish Architecture Foundation .
Commenting today, as the festival drew to a close, Nathalie Weadick, Director of the IAF, said: “Once again, this year’s festival allowed interested members of the public to visit Dublin’s architectural gems and experience our world-class architectural culture, free of charge.
“We are still getting the final tallies in on visitor numbers, but we believe over 30,000 visits were made to the buildings on our programme this year.
“A definite highlight of the weekend was our ‘Big Debate’ on Friday night, where we heard from a range of stakeholders about what sort of city Dublin should become in future years.
"At the event, there was a palpable sense that Dublin’s citizens are strongly committed to playing a proactive role in shaping the future development of the capital city.
There were a number of other other interesting highlights, including the first public tours of the largest building in the country.
She added: “Other highlights included our Brexit Bus Tour at Dublin Port, the showcasing of cutting-edge architecture in private residential homes, and the first public tours of Capital Dock, Ireland’s new tallest building.
"A big priority this year was to ensure innovative designs by current and emerging architecture talent was highlighted, and it was great to see strong public appetite for that.
“We are delighted that the 2019 festival was such a success, and we want to pay tribute to all the buildings that hosted tours and events, as well as all our festival staff and volunteers.”
Further information about Open House Dublin is available at: www.openhousedublin.com .
