* Eileen Gray

The Eileen Gray exhibition is on permanent display at the Decorative Arts & History site, Collins Barracks. The exhibition posthumously realised one of Gray’s last ambitions – to have her work brought back to Ireland. Regarded as one of the most influential 20th Century designers and architects, the exhibition includes such important items as the adjustable chrome table and the non-conformist chair. The exhibition also values Gray on a personal level, including family photographs, her lacquering tools, and personal ephemera. It illustrates an account of her professional development from art student in London and Paris to mature, innovative architect. The exhibition honours the memory of Eileen Gray, modern self-taught architect and designer. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, Second Floor, South Block, Benburb St, Dublin 7.

* The Way We Wore

This exhibition displays clothing and jewellery worn in Ireland principally from the 1760s to the 1960s. Although many still think of ‘Irish Dress’ in the context of woollens worn in the West of Ireland, this exhibition shows that in the past the majority of Irish people, even those who wore locally woven fabrics (silk, linen, wool and cotton), dressed in styles that competed with the fashion conscious of Europe. The exhibition of jewellery features some of the materials from which jewellery has been made, the variety of reasons for wearing jewellery, and the range of styles that people have bought and worn over the last few centuries. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, Third Floor, South Block, Benburb Street, Dublin 7.

* Curator's Choice

This exhibition comprises 25 objects chosen by the Museum’s own curators in the Art & Industrial division. Special attention in this gallery is given to the Fonthill Vase – the earliest documented piece of Chinese porcelain in Europe, regarded as one of the Museum's great international treasures. Among the other objects in this exhibition is a Japanese ceremonial bell over 2,000 years old and the decorative gauntlets worn by King William at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, First Floor, West Block, Benburb Street, Dublin 7.

* Out of Storage

This double-height gallery is designed to give the visitor an impression of the range of artefacts in the reserve collections of the National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, from large pieces of medieval wooden sculpture to delicate pieces of finely-worked lace. The vast array of objects on display is interpreted through interactive multimedia elements. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, First & Second Floor, West Block, Benburb Street, Dublin 7.

* Irish Silver

One of the largest collections of Irish silver in the world, this exhibition traces the development of the silversmith’s craft from the early 17th Century to the present day. It addresses the evolution of design and examines the mining, assaying, and crafting of this precious metal. It also illustrates the various uses of silver - religious, domestic and ceremonial and by means of vignettes seeks to place the objects in their historical and economic context. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, First Floor, South Block, Benburb St, Dublin 7.

* Irish Period Furniture
The period furniture gallery traces the development of furniture designed, made or used in Ireland from the late 17th Century. The collection is displayed in period contexts according to the species of wood available at the time – from oak and walnut to mahogany and satinwood. This evolution is then traced to the use of such materials as chrome in the early 20th Century. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, Second Floor, West Block, Benburb St, Dublin 7.

* Airgead, A Thousand Years of Irish Coins & Currency

This exhibition tells the story of coins and money in Ireland from the 10th Century to the present day - ranging from medieval coins and coin-hoards to modern banknotes. Related material such as tokens and medals are also displayed. The exhibition also traces the development of paper money from the 18th Century to the present, finishing with credit cards and Internet banking. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, First Floor, South Block, Benburb St, Dublin 7.

* What's In Store?

For the first time in the history of the National Museum of Ireland, artefacts normally kept in storage will be accessible to everyone. This storage facility is part of an effort to make publicly visible some of the most important collections from the Museum. The entire national collections of glass, silver, pewter, brass, enamel and Asian applied arts are shown. What’s in Store? is a fascinating array of artefacts that is guaranteed to captivate the imagination of young and old alike. The National Museum of Ireland is pleased to provide this increased access to our history and heritage in the form of this modern visible storage facility.

* The Easter Rising: Understanding 1916

This new exhibition examines the decade of disturbance between 1913 and 1923, from the Dublin Lockout, through the Easter Rising to the end of the Civil War. The social, economic and cultural background to the Rising is explored, concentrating on the political dimension and the personalities involved. The exhibition describes the main events of Easter Week, outlining the locations of the garrisons and incorporating biographical details of the leaders. An original copy of the Proclamation of the Republic, as read by Pádraig Pearse outside the General Post Office on Easter Monday, occupies a central position in the exhibition. The change in public opinion to one of support for the Rising, triggered by the execution of 16 of the leaders, is examined. In the immediate aftermath of the Rising, thousands of insurgents were interned in various prisons, and examples of the nationalistic artworks produced by these prisoners are exhibited. The War of Independence (1919 - 1921), culminating in the Anglo-Irish Treaty, and the Civil War (1922 - 1923), are also examined. There is also a unique opportunity to view the beautifully illuminated manuscript Leabhar na hAiséirghe (Book of the Resurrection), created by the artist-scribe Art O’Murnaghan between 1922 and 1951 to commemorate those who had died in the struggle for independence, and to celebrate the 'resurgent spirit of the nation'. Location: National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, Benburb St, Dublin 7.

* Soldiers and Chiefs: The Irish at War at Home and Abroad, 1550-2001

For in far foreign fields from Dunkirk to Belgrade, lie the soldiers and chiefs of the Irish Brigade." Thomas Davis These lines evoke the fate of the Wild Geese, men who left Ireland to seek her freedom overseas. In fact there have been many Irish brigades, fighting around the world in different armies. At home Ireland has experienced war and peace, suppression and independence, conflict and calm. This exhibition traces military history in Ireland, and uses original artifacts, letters, replicas and interactives to show how soldiering and war have affected the lives of Irish people. Three main themes are explored through the eyes of the average Irish soldier and civilian caught up in war and conflict here in Ireland: Irish soldiers at home; Irish soldiers abroad; and Irish soldiers in the 20th Century. The exhibition also looks at the economic and social aspects of war: why soldiers join armies; women and families at war; and soldiers' personal experience of war and conflict. The extensive collection of military artifacts, loans and recent donations have been sourced from museums all over the world. It is on permanent display over eight galleries, covering 1,700sq m in Collins Barracks. Location: National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks, 1st Floor, North Block and new building in the North East section.

* A Dubliner’s Collection of Asian Art – The Albert Bender Exhibition

Albert M. Bender (1866-1941) was born in Dublin, the son of Rabbi Philip Bender. By the time he was an adolescent he had emigrated to San Francisco, California where by the turn of the 20th century he was one of the most successful insurance brokers on the west coast of the United States. Although first attracted to book collecting and modern art, both of which he generously supported he also became interested in Asian art. In honour of his mother, Augusta Bender, he donated approx. 260 artefacts of mostly Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan origin to the National Museum of Ireland between 1931 and 1936. The then Director of the National Museum, archaeologist Adolf Mahr, was Albert Bender’s main point of contact throughout the donations. Although the National Museum had collected Asian applied arts from the late 19th/early 20th centuries, this was the first significant series of donations given to the National Museum during the early years of Irish Independence. This fact was acknowledged at government level by the opening of the ‘Augusta Bender Memorial Room of Far Eastern Art’ by the then President of the Executive Council, Eamonn De Valera in June 1934. The objects collected by Bender and subsequently donated to the NMI include a rare set of Thangkas (paintings on cotton) of the Arhats (disciples) of Buddha and four Lokapalas (Guardians) of the Four Quarters of the World from a Tibetan-Buddhist temple dating to the 18th century. Also included are textiles associated with the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD), Japanese Ukiyo-e (woodblock prints), a Daoist priest’s robe from 17th/18th century China and several decorative arts objects in the areas of metalwork, ceramics and wood.

* Irish Country Furniture

This exhibition contains the furniture typically found in the traditional rural Irish home. It shows both the range of styles from different areas of the country, the functional nature of each piece, and the skill of native Irish craftsmen. The display also highlights the evolution and development of traditional furniture and furnishings as Ireland’s social and economic circumstances changed through the 19th and 20th centuries. The full range of furniture and domestic fittings required to furnish a country home is presented to the visitor in its social context, including dressers, beds, seating and hearth furniture. Central to the display at Collins Barracks is a re-construction of a country kitchen. Throughout Ireland’s smaller rural dwellings and farmhouses, the hearth was the central point of the home. It was the functional and social centre of the house where the cooking, eating, socialising and storytelling took place. This re-construction contains chairs, a settlebed, storage furniture such as a meal bin and food cupboard, a dresser, a kitchen table and hearth furniture, along with examples of cooking and eating utensils, to illustrate how an Irish country kitchen was arranged, and the importance of this area of the house as the heart of the home. Pride of place in the traditional country kitchen was reserved for the dresser, which was used to display the wealth, and therefore social status, of the household. The exhibition has several fine examples of dressers from around the country, each displaying ceramic wares such as willow pattern platters, sponge ware and transfer pattern mugs and plates, earthenware bowls and jugs, and bowls turned from wood. The work of craftsmen such as the travelling tinsmith is shown, and the gallery’s display of domestic iron objects such as the elaborate candle and rushlight holders and oatcake toasters show not only the skill of the local blacksmith, but the desire for beautifully designed and crafted objects in the home. Variations in styles of furniture such as bedding and storage and domestic wares can also be seen in detail, with smaller areas of the gallery dedicated to showing a range of each type. The display of chairs and stools in particular shows the variations in design, technique and materials found in seating around Ireland.

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National Museum of Ireland - Archaeology & History