The sixteenth edition of Culture Night kicks off country-wide on Friday, September 17.

For one night, doors that have been stuck will be flung open and dusty thresholds swept in anticipation for Culture Night. The one night of the year when the locked and bolted, places around the capitol will be opened for the public. A nod to the months of cultural deprivation, the theme of this year’s Culture Night is Come Together Again. Organisers have described the night as a celebration of the diversity of culture, creativity and the arts that Ireland offers. Doors will be open late to facilitate the after-workers, events are free of charge although booking is advised where applicable. There is a lot going on so we have collected a list of our top 10 picks of the night:

10.

Gerard Byrne Studio Tour

Get inside the studio of the man who has been propping his easel up and painting the city streets for years. See his latest Spring and Summer 2021 plein air paintings collection which is made up of over 50 pieces. There will be three tours throughout the night, each lasting 45 minutes and followed by a live Q&A with the artist, booking is required click here for more information.

Where: Chelmsford Road, Ranelagh

Time: From 17.00 – 18.00 / 19.00-20.00 / 21:00-22.00

9.

Tour of Freemasons’ Hall

A stalwart of Culture Night events, the Freemasons Hall on Molesworth Street is worth a gander. The purpose-built building has been the headquarters of the Freemasons in Ireland since 1869. The second oldest Grand Lodge in the world, boasts stained glass windows, historical portraits, and a really strange room with loads of old chairs. No booking is required for more information visit the Culture Night website here.

Where: Molesworth Street, Dublin 2

Time: 17.00 – 22.00

8.

The Fumbally Stables’s Print Workshop

The iconic Fumbally Stables will be running a popup print workshop on Culture Night. The live print experience will be hosted by textile designer Liz Walsh from design studio 29 Bride Street. Visitors will be able to pull their own screen print using one of Liz’s signature designs. The event is can be pre-booked, on the Culture Night website.

Where: The Fumbally Stables, The Liberties

Time: 17.00 – 21.00

7.

Cork Street Quaker Burial Ground

The Quaker burial ground in Cork Street will be open to visitors for Culture Night. Opened in 1697, over 4,700 Quakers were buried there until the burial ground’s closure in 1868. There will be short talks on the Quakers involvement in locations like the Liberty Creche, the Meath Street School, and Meeting House, alongside an exhibition organised by the Dublin Quaker Culture Night Committee. Prominent Quaker merchants like Goodbody tobacco factories and W & R Jacob, and their impact on the city will also be discussed. No booking is required for this event, for more information visit the website.

Where: Quaker Burial Ground, Cork Street, St Catherine’s

Time: 18.00 – 22.00

5.

We are Motherland Screenings

For the night, the award-winning production company Motherland have collated a selection of their short films, documentaries, and music videos for a screening. The night will involve some Q&As with an array of award-winning Irish filmmakers, wine and also the must-have accessory for a film screening, popcorn. No booking is required for more information visit the site for more information.

Where: Hill Street, Dublin 1

Time: 19.00 – 22.00

6.

BLOCK T Studios’s Open Day

Block T Studios will open their doors on Dublin 8’s Bow Lane West to visitors for Culture Night. Work from some of the artists will be shown alongside workshop demos based on their Skillsets educational program. No booking is required, for more information click here.

Where: Bow Lane West

Time: 16.00 – 22.00

4.

Cultural Tour of Bewley’s Grafton Street

The iconic doors of Bewley’s will be opened to visitors on Culture Night. Visitors will get to prowl around the newly revamped Grafton Street café, there will be talks from members of the Campbell family and the Bewley’s team. Talks will cover the social, artistic and architectural impact that the cafe has had on the cultural scene in Dublin. No booking is required to visit, the website for more information.

Where: Grafton Street

Time: 16.00 – 23.00

3.

These Dark Shapes Drop-in Sculpture Workshop

As part of her open space exhibition artist, Róisín White will be inviting visitors to make their own miniature sculptures to add to the installation. White’s exhibition These Dark Shapes was created as a physical response to her experience in the pandemic, she has described the process of making the work as a form of “catharsis” White will ask visitors to create their own scuptures of this based on their experiences. Booking is now open, for more information visit the website.

Where: 115-117 The Coombe, Dublin 8

Time: 16.00 – 20.00

2.

First Day Gallery’s Pop-up Art Gallery

The city’s burgeoning art collective First Day Gallery will be curating a pop-up art gallery in the Guinness Storehouse. A range of painting, sculpture, print, photography and conceptual installations will be collocated and arranged by the founders of FDG Robyn Carey and Neil Dunne, with recent work from the likes of Ciana Fitzgerald, Michelle Malone, Matthew Stickland, Farouk Alao, Seán Whelan Dempsey, Niall KJ Cullen and more, on display. For those that missed the free Culture Night tickets, the Guinness Storehouse will be offering a 20% discount code (FIRSTDAYGALLERY ) for those wishing to access the gallery (here).

Where: Guinness Storehouse

Time: 19.00

1.

Give Us The Night’s NIGHTVISION

Meeting House Square will become an audio-visual experience for Culture Night, with ambient, experimental and club-influenced sounds wafting around the place. Dream~cycles will kick off with their melancholic dance-floor melodies followed by Fran Hartnett who will debut his new audiovisual show The Time Being, which sees industrial dub rhythms and nostalgic electro soundscapes performed through machines and improvised electronic sounds. No booking is required, hit the link to find out more information.

Where: Meeting House Square

Time: 21.30 – 23:30

Elsewhere on District: First Day Gallery launch a pop-up art gallery in the Guinness Storehouse