The National Gallery of Ireland is one of the country’s most popular visitor attractions. It houses the nation’s collection of European and Irish art from about 1300 to the present day, and an extensive library and archive.
Entry to the permanent collection, and many temporary exhibitions, is free for all. Open seven days a week, the Gallery is conveniently located in Dublin City centre, a short stroll from Trinity College and Merrion Square.
Free guided tours are available at weekends. Family packs and drawing and creative writing kits are available to borrow for free. Facilities include a shop, café, and wheelchair access to all levels.
Some temporary exhibitions need to be booked in advance and have an admission charge, but there are discounts and special offers available.
Take a look at the Gallery website in advance of your visit for full details.
- Ludovico Mazzolino: The Crossing of the Red Sea
Family funLudovico Mazzolino: The Crossing of the Red Sea An exhibition showcasing extensive scientific and conservation work on a sixteenth century masterpiece at the National Gallery of Ireland.
- Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone. The Art of Friendship
Family funMainie Jellett and Evie Hone. The Art of Friendship The second major exhibition of 2025 is dedicated to the pioneering Irish modernists Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone, and will bring together 90 of their works of art.
- Sketching Tour of Mainie Jellett & Evie Hone
Arts and cultureSketching Tour of Mainie Jellett & Evie Hone Explore Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone. The Art of Friendship through this engaging sketching tour, incorporating rich historical information, art appreciation and lightly facilitated tuition.
- Irish Sign Language Tour of Mainie Jellett & Evie Hone
Free things to doIrish Sign Language Tour of Mainie Jellett & Evie Hone Join the National Gallery's Irish Sign Language tour guides for a look at Maine Jellett and Evie Hone, The Art of Friendship.
- Sunday Talk: 'The same burning wish’ - Elizabeth Bowen, Mainie Jellett, and Irish Modernism
Free things to doSunday Talk: 'The same burning wish’ - Elizabeth Bowen, Mainie Jellett, and Irish Modernism Join Dr Michael Waldron, Curator of Collections & Special Projects at the Crawford Art Gallery, for this special free talk at National Gallery of Ireland.
- Sunday Family Drop-in Workshop: Shaping Jellet & Hone
Family funSunday Family Drop-in Workshop: Shaping Jellet & Hone Join a free Sunday Family Drop-in Workshop: Shaping Jellet & Hone at the National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.
- Artists In Conversation: Encounters with Jellett
Arts and cultureArtists In Conversation: Encounters with Jellett A special in-conversation event with artists Susan Connolly and Brian Fay at the National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.
- An Artist's Presence
Family funAn Artist's Presence An Artist’s Presence explores how artists, consciously or unconsciously, have placed themselves in their work through drawings and paintings from the Gallery’s permanent collection.
Call into Sweny's Pharmacy in Lincoln Place immortalised in James Joyce’s Ulysses, still selling the famous lemon soap as bought by Leopold Bloom in chapter five of Ulysses.
