The Devlin Hotel x Roe & Co Irish Whiskey
This is Dublin October 2018
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Hotels are usually transient places. Traditionally, the lobby sees faces come and go, with guests rushing up to their rooms, only coming down for a couple of extra towels. When The Devlin Hotel and Roe & Co Irish Whiskey approached us at District and explained their ethos of community inclusion, cultural acceleration and collaboration, it was refreshing. In Ranelagh, they’ve set out to create a space that is ultimately a hotel, but it’s also a hub of creativity for the community. With on-site additions like a cinema in the basement, a coffee-fuelled lobby with hot-desks, a rooftop restaurant with panoramic views of Ranelagh, and further afield, as well as forthcoming collaborations with local community members, they’re ready to start off their love affair with Dublin 6 with a bang. In this new quarterly magazine, entitled ‘This Is Dublin’ in association with The Devlin and Roe & Co Irish Whiskey, we’ll be honing in on one area of the captial at a time and the artists, restaurateurs, independent shop owners, publicans, musicians and cultural gatekeepers who give their neighbourhood character and charm. With the launch of The Devlin in Ranelagh it seems fitting that we kick off our collaborative publication series with Dublin 6.
— Eric Davidson, Editor of District Magazine.
1 Kevin Hurley 5 Six Pubs of Dublin 6 7 Alan Mulvihill 9 In the Company of Books 13 Nightmarket 15 James Earley 19 Urban Health 23 MART 27 Ranelagh Arts
Words // X — Photography // X
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Issue One
Kevin Hurley
General Manager of The Devlin
Kevin Hurley has racked up over 20 years in the hospitality
industry. Kicking off his career modestly, like many others have done, “collecting glasses down the country back home”, he’s since gone on to carve out an exciting and pioneering career in Dublin’s food and beverage scene.
Returning to Dublin from the UK at the height of the
Celtic Tiger, Kevin became beverage manager for Residence Private Members Club in 2007, before eventually linking up with Press Up in 2014 to open one of the most influential bars in the capital in recent
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Words //Eric Davidson — Photography // George Voronov
years; The Liquor Rooms. He ran the vintage-
food and beverage part is my bread and butter.” 2
inspired cocktail bar as General Manager before
setting off on a globetrotting new endeavour as
Devlin in the 40-seater Stella Theatre Ranelagh,
Global Brand Manager of Teeling Irish Whiskey.
it makes for an opportune time for Kevin to take
me through all of the hidden gems the building
“My next job saw me travel the world,
As we sit in the basement of The
clocking in a lot of hotel nights,” he explains.
has to offer. Not many hotels have a built-in
“It was a great job, but I have a young family,
cinema on-site and Kevin says he’s excited to
so at a certain point the 100 nights out of the
show it off not just to guests, but to the general
country a year wasn’t working. I came back and
public and the people of Dublin 6.
met my old friends at Press Up and they had
an exciting new project, which is this hotel.”
It’s a full-service cinema. You don’t have to be
a guest to book a ticket. We’ll be doing two
‘This hotel’ is, of course, The Devlin,
“It’s very much a standalone cinema.
and Kevin is now on the cusp of swinging the
screenings nightly, one around 6.30pm and
doors open to the new premises and welcoming
one around 9.30pm, and that’ll be seven
guests and locals under his new role of General
nights a week.
Manager. While his wealth of experience has
gotten him to this point, he says the support
bigger affair, boasting 200-odd seats, we’re
network is what will make the new establishment
going to concentrate on independent, art-house
thrive. The Dean Hotel is The Devlin’s big sister
and cult classic films. Much like our successful
on Harcourt Street, and like any older sibling
sister cinema in Rathmines, this will be fully
worth their salt it’s there to guide the youngest
serviced too. Cocktails to your table, a
of the brood.
beautiful menu… It’s cinema with a bit of luxury.
We really want this hotel to be part of the
“It’s an easier baptism of fire for us.
“Where Stella in Rathmines is a much
We’ve a fantastic Hotels Area Manager in Bryan
community. A hub and social gathering space for
Davern, he’s hotel through and through, then the
the locals.”
“We want to give the locals a new perspective of their village, a new view of their community.”
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This is a recurring theme for Kevin and The Devlin team.
They’ve set up the hotel to fully integrate the incoming visitors with the community.Putting the capital and its bustling suburbs on a pedestal is their modus operandi.
“We want to showcase Dublin city, we’re only a 20 minute
leisurely stroll to St. Stephen’s Green, but also we want to showcase Ranelagh and the surrounding areas in Dublin 6 and further afield. If you were in London and you told a local you were living 20 minutes from Hyde Park iit would be considered city centre.
“The more you explore the neighbourhoods of Dublin, the more
you realise they all have their quirks and niches.”
Take the lift or the stairs up just four flights in The Devlin and you’ll reach Layla’s Rooftop Restaurant. While it’s hardly Top of the Rock, the panoramic views of Dublin city will still take your breath away. “We’re going to be focusing on New York/Italian-style cuisine. What’s spectacular up there, besides the food, are the views. You can see the Dublin mountains, Rathmines and all of southern Dublin, plus to the east you can see the Irish sea, the Poolbeg Towers and the Aviva Stadium. Even though it’s only four floors up, it’s a skyscraper for Ranelagh!”
“The more you explore the neighbourhoods of Dublin, the more you realise they all have their quirks and niches.” 3
Words //Eric Davidson — Illustrator // Sally Caulwell
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The top 6 pubs of Dublin 6 Ranelagh’s main street alone is one of the areas most densely populated with modern bars and traditional-style pubs in the entire city. We’ve made a shortlist of our six favourite spots to either watch a match, listen to some music, or catch up with friends in, all while imbibing on a delicious beverage.
Smyth’s, Ranelagh Popular with the locals, Smyth’s is a go-to for a quiet pint and a chat, or an evening of belly laughs with mates. The jewel in their crown is their Sunday jazz sessions, and their currently giving the venue a make-over, just in time for Christmas!
Humphreys, Ranelagh We urge you to keep this information to yourself, for the locals’ sake... But there’s nothing like the Humphreys beer garden in the sun. Then in winter out comes the canvas and heaters. Don’t be surprised if you end up whiling away a few hours here, engrossed in conversation and pints.
Blackbird, Rathmines P.Mac’s little sister south of The Liffey, Blackbird has a craft beer selection that alone is enough to keep you coming back. Plus the music is always on point. Expect to hear anything from NWA to Queens of the Stone Age.
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Birchalls, Ranelagh Our next-door neighbours, Birchalls has been in our ‘hood for years, and for good reason. It has a classic, old-school pub vibe. The staff are super friendly and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more bustling atmosphere.
Taphouse, Ranelagh Previously known as Russell’s, Taphouse rebranded a few years ago. It’s now one of the most popular spaces in Ranelagh to watch a football or rugby match while sipping on one of their many craft beer options.
Americana Bar @ The Devlin, Ranelagh The Devlin have assembled a crack-team of the very best bartenders and they’ve developed a menu full of surprises. There are wild and wonderful bottled cocktails, bonafide classics with a twist, plus Americana Bar is serving up soakage in the form of delicious food throughout the day and night. Photography // Smyth’s of Ranelagh by George Voronov
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Getting to know Alan Mulvihill European Brand Ambassador for Roe & Co Irish Whiskey For Alan Mulvihill, attending hospitality training changed the game. He couldn’t get enough of “creating an experience for a customer”, and that set the ball rolling for the next ten years of his life.
Alan travelled the world bartending, making drinks with the
Irish rugby team during the world cup in New Zealand being a particular highlight. From there he moved to Canada, then to Australia, where things really kicked up a notch.
“Melbourne is one of the most incredible cities for food and
drink. I ended up working in one of the best restaurants in Australia, running the one-man-bar upstairs. Every drink that was made there in three years was made by me, which was cool.”
He went on to work in a series of award-winning cocktail
bars Down Under, cutting his teeth and garnering knowledge of whiskey. Then after a stint visiting Scottish distilleries, and a not-sobrief detour to Mexico to set up a bar that exclusively sold independent tequila, it was time to come home when Roe & Co Irish Whiskey came calling.
“I had that classic Irish thing of when you’re young wanting
to be disassociated with the country. You want to see the world, but recently I’ve been so proud of the way things have been changing in
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Words // Eric Davidson — Photography //Craig Connolly
Ireland, especially in terms of the whiskey industry coming back to life and the respect for the food culture we have.
“I live a stone’s throw from where the new Roe & Co distillery
is being built too. George Roe used to live on the same street that I live on! So I’m really immersed in it all. I love being in Dublin, there’s so much going on there.”
Near where Alan now lives was once affectionately known
as the Golden Triangle of whiskey production, a place where back in the day all of the main players in Dublin whiskey were based, where
“George Roe used to live on the same street that I live on! So I’m really immersed in it all.”
a whopping 27 distilleries were located. With Roe & Co Irish Whiskey’s latest venture, along with a series of other whiskey-led developments in the area, it seems
the next few years could usher in the most fruitful age ever for “the water of life” in the capital.
“Back then if you were making whiskey in Ireland, you’d put
Dublin on it and you could charge twice the price. It was like the way people see Cognac as a luxury, Dublin whiskey was that back then. Then came prohibition in the States, a war with England and a couple of other things… But it’s going to be booming again.
“We went and collected the new Roe & Co stills from
Edinburgh a few weeks ago and we installed them last week. They’re incredible, really weird looking, whiskey nerds will really enjoy them. A lot of what we do and speak about is the rejuvenation of whiskey, and the same applies to the rejuvenation of the Liberties. And we’re part of that.”
Roe & Co Irish Whiskey was made in collaboration with a hand-picked group of Ireland’s top bartenders who, together with Roe & Co Master Blender Caroline Martin, created a unique blended whiskey that is perfect for cocktails and neat serves.
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Issue One
In the Company of Books
Gwen Allman opened her first business, a gallery called Blue Loft in Ranelagh, in 2004. It was here in 2006 where herself and her business partner Anne Macdona
started a book club. That was the first chapter in what would become the road to opening one of the most well-curated bookshops in the city.
The Company of Books is open seven days a week, and
has an eclectic collection of fiction, non-fiction and children’s books. Naturally the store has a devoted fan base.
While Gwen says Ranelagh has become considerably more
restaurant and night time-oriented, there’s still a place for independent retailers. Aoife Sheehan sat down with Gwen to discuss Ranelagh’s book-reading population and how her store has persevered through economic turmoil and is here to stay.
Your shop front is so beautiful, do you think there is a pressure in Ranelagh specifically for a business to come across as original? Yeah for sure, we opened our business nine years ago and it was important for us to have a good impression on the street front. A distinctive streetfront, and something that has a clean, modern design fits well with the area. It draws people in.
Why did you choose Ranelagh? Did the sense of community affect where you chose to set up shop? Yeah, there was definitely a gap and I’m actually a resident of the area. I’ve been living in Ranelagh since the mid ‘90s and I always thought that [a bookshop] would suit the area well. It was just a matter of finding the right premises, and then this came up to let in 2009 and I liked the double-fronted nature of it, I think that works well for a bookshop in terms of display.
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Words // Aoife Donnellan — Photography // George Voronov
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I know you have a book club that is currently full, who does the reading community you’ve set up attract? Who is your customer? They are quite a devoted and loyal bunch, there have been very few departures in recent years. One person left because she moved to London, so that was reasonable [laughs]! Yeah, it’s a mix of age groups, obviously all of their interest is in reading. In terms of both
“The people of Ranelagh are a curious bunch who like to be informed.”
the bookshop and the book club, the people of Ranelagh are a curious bunch who like to be informed. They have good taste in terms of fiction and non-fiction and it’s great to be able
to cater for that. It’s great to have books like this on the doorstep so you don’t have to go into town, for me that is one of the reasons for setting up the shop, just the convenience of having something like this in a neighbourhood.
Do you think coming into a bookshop is still important? Why should people choose to shop locally instead of getting their books online? What can you bring to the experience? Well, I think it’s the physical presence of books. You’re able to walk in and you’ll get the smell and if you’re a real book person you’ll like to pick up the books and feel them. Being able to browse. I know you can look online, but it’s not the same thing, like you said to me, ‘Oh I see three things I want here already’, and that was in ten seconds! There is space for both. Also, you can walk away holding your book, you don’t have to wait for the postman.
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“It’s great to have books like this on the doorstep so you don’t have to go into town...” You’ve, I’m sure, almost handled every book in the shop so you can give informed recommendations?
Yeah I have a reasonably small space here so I’m careful
with the book selection I make, how I choose to fill it, and part of that is knowing what the neighbourhood likes to read. It’s having an instinct for something that would be of interest to my customer, but also what’s in the news. But in terms of the weekends, you get families coming in with little kids and they just love to look at the books. It’s not all technology, books still have a place. When we opened in 2009 there were two things going on, number one the recession and the second was the transfer to Kindles, so e-readers were beginning to increase in sales, but since then they have plateaued.
People have come back to the physical book, they have
Kindles that they might like to bring on holiday, but when they’re at home they like to have a book in their hand. It’s great that there is space for both.
Do you think that you have a responsibility to bring books dealing with specific topics to the fore? To curate your offering to keep people informed?
Yeah, that is the balancing act of a bookseller. Knowing
what the area likes to read and making people aware of books they may not have considered. In order to do that you’re looking at journalism, prizes and festivals. For example, in August we had ‘Women In Translation’ month, so that would feature international writers who
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Words // Aoife Donnellan — Photography // George Voronov
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have been translated into English and maybe we wouldn’t be so aware of them over here. I have the opportunity to promote something like that in Ranelagh - Finnish writers, Italian writers, Chinese writers… I can bring that to Ranelagh.
There are so many independent businesses in Ranelagh, do you feel like businesses in the area support each other? Have you ever done any collaborations with other
to every business, no matter what size, whether
Ranelagh businesses?
you’re a small independent bookshop or a
big multinational.
Yeah, it’s a good question. Over the
years there have been different schemes - there was a We Love Ranelagh scheme where all the
What do you hope your ethos inspires in
retailers combined to put on certain offers for the
people? What do you want people to leave
residents. From our point of view we worked with
your shop thinking?
the Ranelagh Arts Festival over the years - for
example if they had an event we would supply
experience while they were here and also learned
the books. We are always open to collaboration.
something, whether that be choosing a book and
I’d like to think they had a welcoming
maybe coming across a book they didn’t know
Do you enjoy the human side of owning
they wanted to read and they’re leaving with it
a business? I’d imagine sharing book
in their hand and they’re happy. It’s all about
recommendations can be satisfying when
positive customer experience and them wanting
someone comes back to tell you you’ve sold
to come back. Nine years later we’re still here,
literature that has changed their life.
and to survive a recession and the whole e-book
thing means there is still a place for us here.
Yeah absolutely, I get a lot of repeat
business from when I’ve recommended a book to someone and they’ve really enjoyed it and they want to pick my brain and get another recommendation. It’s really satisfying to think that you have influenced someone in a positive way and that they have been happy with your choice. That’s what makes the job worthwhile. Definitely human interaction, that’s so important
thecompanyofbooks.ie
Issue One
Nightmarket
Tastes of home
“Jutarat Suwankeeree, known affectionately as ‘R’, grew up
in Hua Hin, a coastal city at the top of the southern Malay peninsula and later Chiang Mai in the North of Thailand. Her partner, Conor Sexton, grew up in Kildimo, a small village just a few miles outside Limerick city,” marks the beginning of the story of one of Dublin’s best Asian restaurants, Nightmarket.
Named after the night-time street markets found across
Thailand, where your senses are put on overdrive, the spot opened last year and has become an integral part of Ranelagh’s food scene since. We caught up with Conor to discuss family and food.
You opened your doors in 2017 with the promise of bringing authentic dishes of regional Thailand to Dublin, do you feel you’ve succeeded in that?
We’re getting there, restaurants are always a work in
progress. You have to keep pushing the boundaries, we’ve stuck to our basic principles, we’re reluctant to say authentic Thai food, but it’s the Thai food of Chaing Mai and Wah Hin that we bring to people. R, who is my life partner and business partner, she grew up in both those areas. Both have quite distinct cuisines.
Did you feel it was difficult to source the ingredients needed to provide the authentic food of both regions? It requires a lot of work and concentration to get the real ingredients in, we have one dish where the main ingredient is Cha Plu leaves which are leaves from the pepper tree, within that dish there are tiny dried shrimp that we need to bring in directly ourselves, it’s the little details like that that we have to research and get right first of all.
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Words // Craig Connolly — Photography // Eoin Holland
“We’ve had people in who had their honeymoon in Thailand 20 or 30 years ago and they say that it brings them back to that time and place.” I’d imagine it makes it worthwhile when
With your restaurant, you’re trying to set a
people are receptive to these things and
tone and create an ambience that can’t be
it reminds them of their time away in
replicated at home…
that region?
It’s about getting to know people and creating
People are so well travelled these
Exactly, it’s a welcoming ambience!
days, we’ve had people in who had their
a home from home for them. They get to know
honeymoon in Thailand 20 or 30 years ago and
us and we get to know them, find out they like,
they say that it brings them back to that time
what they don’t like, what little peculiarities they
and place. People don’t want compromise,
have. It’s all those little details that differentiate
they want the taste, they want the spice,
a local family run restaurant from others, and
they want the full flavour.
that’s what we concentrate on.
Family seems like an integral part of your
nightmarket.ie
restaurant, how do you feel working with family affects your work? Can it be challenging?
Family life and restaurant life are
actually quite compatible, Emily [R and Conor’s young daughter] loves being part of the operation, the first question I get every morning is ‘Who was in last night?’. I get a little tug of my shirt and she asks, ‘Who do I know here? Who’s in?’.
She sounds like quite a good Maître D’ already…
[Laughs] She’s a work in progress.
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Issue One
Art at The Devlin
Curated by James Earley
“Art is such a huge part of what we’re doing here,”
General Manager of The Devlin, Kevin Hurley, told us during a recent conversation about the new hotel, and there’s no better Dubliner to call in for curation than James Earley.
Probably best known to locals for his large scale work on
the Blooms Hotel in Temple Bar, James Earley is an artist whose work brightens up many corners of the city. He’s been painting for around 20 years, but it’s been his curatorial work of late that has solidified his place as one of Ireland’s artistic gatekeepers.
Upon opening, The Dean Hotel on Harcourt Street recruited
James to adorn the walls with pieces by homegrown artists, and now the revered member of Ireland’s creative community is at it again.
“Similar to its sister hotel The Dean, The Devlin’s art
collection aims to promote the best of emerging and established Irish artists,” James explains. “This eclectic collection focuses on contemporary, visual artists working across fine art painting, print and photography. I was interested in exploring the idea of creating a collection that has an accessible quality, without compromising on artistic integrity.
“Before researching this project I reviewed The Dean
Hotel’s collection and realised there was a poor representation of female artists. This is something that I have actively tried to rectify in The Devlin and is certainly evident as one walks around the hotel.”
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Words // Eric Davidson — Photography // Eoin Holland
Thre ad St ories —
False H
ood
Leah
Hews
on—
Illusi
on St ud y
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Absin the H our or M cCau ghey — Elean
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Chloe E
arly —
Archi pelag o
“This eclectic collection focuses on contemporary, visual artists working across fine art painting, print and photography.”
Words // Eric Davidson — Photography // Eoin Holland
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Here are some of the key works James recommends checking out while you’re exploring The Devlin: — A commissioned oil painting by Chloe Early located in Americana Bar. — An original screen print from seminal op-artist Bridget Riley located at the lobby lift area. — Artworks by Eva Rothchild, Kathy Prendergast and Dorothy Cross located in Americana Bar and third floor stairwell. — A gargantuan monochrome painting by Joy Gerrard from her protest series, measuring at 2.5 metres wide. This is the largest artwork within the hotel’s collection and is located on the first floor lift lobby. — An original neon Tracey Emin piece above reception.
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Urban Health
Health in the ‘hood
We meet Dee Buckley on an already busy Thursday
afternoon, just before the rush of health-conscious locals come bursting through the door of Urban Health for the lunchtime rush. The place is a mecca for clean eating, an establishment “born through a love of healthy, nutritious food and an active lifestyle”, according to Dee and her husband and business partner Darragh.
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Words // Eric Davidson — Photography // George Voronov
Since opening in 2014, Urban Health has become the go-to spot for the properly nourished portion of Dublin 6’s population.
Dee and Darragh met in Australia, but returned to
Ireland in 2010, and missing the healthy food and lifestyle options of Sydney, they felt a gap needed to be filled. They now have a full brunch menu available seven days a week, they offer corporate wellness packages and in 2016 they opened Urban Space — an on-site yoga and pilates studio.
We dig a little deeper into the story of Urban Health
with Dee Buckley.
What made you come back to Dublin from your travels in Australia?
That’s always the thing with Dublin for me, you don’t
know what you’ve got until it’s gone. Every time I went away, I just appreciated Ireland so much, especially Dublin. There’s such a cool vibe in Dublin. I’m so proud of being Irish. I’d never intended really staying away. I was always going to come back.
What made you choose Ranelagh?
I’ve lived here since I was three, I’ve grown up around here. It’s changed so, so much since I first moved in. Now, there’s such a cool restaurant and coffee shop vibe around Ranelagh, but the one thing again that we noticed was that there were no health food places. The restaurants around here are amazing, absolutely! But where could we get good, healthy products like spirulina, wheatgrass, fresh juices? That’s why we started Urban Health.
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There’s a village mentality, but it’s so close to the city. Do you have that sense of community with locals?
100 per cent! That’s the beauty of Ranelagh, it’s like a
country village in the big city. Everyone knows each other. All of the businesses around here help each other out. If we run out of coffee cups, we borrow them from someone else, no big deal. We keep an eye on each other.
The bigger franchises don’t do well in Ranelagh, people
just want to support the small local businesses.
On social media yous talk about enviornmental sustainability a lot, is that important to you?
Our whole thing is we wanted it to be about healthy
lifestyle. It’s not just about food, we have a yoga and pilates studio upstairs. We really believe in health as a whole. Mind, body and soul. We made the decision to try and cut down, we’re not plastic free totally yet, but all of our packaging is recyclable. That was our big goal for 2018.
Does it frustrate you, as an independent company making a big effort, going into the supermarket and seeing plastic everywhere?
The bigger companies need to take the lead. Until they
start demanding it it’s making it so much more expensive for everybody else. I think what frustrates me more now though is that all of our packaging here is compostable, but when people leave here, there are no compost bins, so they are forced to put it in the general rubbish.
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Words // Eric Davidson — Photography // George Voronov
“That’s the beauty of Ranelagh, it’s like a country village in the big city.”
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Speaking of being an independent company - you mentioned in an interview before that all of your waking hours are consumed by work. But does the sense of achievement drive you to keep doing it? Definitely, I don’t think I’d ever be fully happy working for someone else. I’ve always wanted to just do my own thing. There are times where you’re answering emails at 11pm, or you’ve forgotten to order something and you waking up in the middle of the night thinking about it. But for all of the bad points, there are so many good points as well. It’s a lot of hard work, running a business, but for me doing something I really believe in is what’s most rewarding. I put my head on my pillow at night time and feel I’m doing something that can help people. I can feel like I’m actually improving their life.
urbanhealth.ie
Issue One
MART
The heART of Rathmines
Back in 1847 a fire station was built in the now creatively
bustling Rathmines area of Dublin 6. The fire brigade based in the building were instrumental in combating the blaze on O’Connell Street (then Sackville Street) during the 1916 rising and other significant events throughout its storied history. The station was used right up until the 1980s, however very soon after it would become neglected and disused. Brave service-people and roaring sirens were replaced by the sound of pigeons flapping around in the roof and floorboards.
That was until Ciara Scanlon and Matthew Nevin
happened upon the property in 2012. The journey to where they are today is as brave and daring as the work done by the emergency services before them, if not physically, at the very least through their sheer perseverance. Major risks were taken since the pair formed their creative partnership back in 2007, and now with two art galleries, eight studios, over 120 members and a key cog in Dublin’s artistic community, even the tough days are worth it for Ciara and Matthew.
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Words // Eric Davidson — Photography // George Voronov
“There’s a freedom in designing your own path
and provided workspace, that’s the biggest
and building something yourself,” Ciara admits.
thing that’s happened. Most of our big shows
“Sometimes you feel like it’s going to collapse
have been international, Europe, Japan, we’re
and then other days you think, ‘We’re going to
about to open an arts centre in LA… We’re doing
be ok’. But it has given us so much experience.”
it on our own backs, with just some support…
Yeah, we’re kind of lunatics.”
Matthew laughs at this, remembering
the not so encouraging words of one person in
the early days.
interjects. “Culture Ireland are our biggest
supporters in terms of supporting art abroad.
“We were told by one advisor at the
“It happens organically,” Ciara
start that we need to slug out a job and do the
The Irish Arts Centre in Los Angeles we’re about
gallery part time...”
to set up will be our biggest venture. We’ll have a
complimentary exhibition in Dublin too, mirroring
Ciara adds, “One arts officer said
you’re either complete lunatics or geniuses.
what happens over there.”
We still don’t know which one!”
vision of opening a MART for years in LA and that
Things have expanded exponentially
Matthew explains that they had a
for MART since its inception just before one of
it was when they received a grant specifically for
the biggest financial crises Ireland ever faced.
promoting Irish art abroad when it all lifted off.
I ask if their ethos has mutated as the world
around them changed.
is we’re always doing stuff. What is the next
project? What are we working on next?
“We started in 2007 in Galway, so
from the very beginning we set out to provide a space to showcase our artwork, our peers’ work, and that hasn’t really changed,” says Matthew. “What’s changed is that we’ve opened studios
“The thing about myself and Ciara
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We’re trying to be grounded in what we’ve done and what we’ve achieved. It helps that we’re very self-aware and that we have a really great team around us, telling us how our studios are doing.
“Opening a gallery, in an old fire station in the middle of
Dublin is amazing, but for myself and Ciara it’s like, ‘Ok, we’ve done that! Now it’s time for the next thing’.”
Ciara says that this modesty isn’t shared by many of
their contemporaries in the United States and that they’ve got a very Irish attitude towards their achievements.
“We’re probably too grounded,” she admits. “Because
in America if someone has ‘a pop-up exhibition in a suitcase’ they make it seem like they’ve reinvented the wheel. Whereas we’re like, ‘Ah sure you know, we’ve got eight buildings and a gallery… It’s grand!’. We’re not very good at bigging ourselves up, which is something we need to get better at.”
MART has a studio presence in Portobello, Kilmainham,
Crumlin, its flagship spaces in Rathmines and a new studio in the pipeline. Some of these locations are not traditionally popular with artists, so what are the prerequisites for the duo? Ciara says there’s nowhere in Dublin that’d be off limits for opening up a space.
“We have certain requirements that we want from a
space, but we’re open to being in any part of the city. It’s the artists that create that community, just by just being there.” And any area would be over the moon to see the MART crew roll into town, because with them brings the inevitable aftershock of culture and business.
“We know we played a leading part in making Rathmines
a more creative and exciting place to live and work in,” says Matthew. “Just look at everything that’s opened here since 2012. We’ve now got something like 70 creatives working on just one street here.” While Ciara says she always felt the warm blanket of the surrounding area of Dublin 6, it was only when their iconic site in Rathmines was facing demolition to build an access laneway
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that she saw how far MART’s reach had gone in the community. “On a personal level, I’m very small town and I love going around talking to the local cobbler. When we thought we were going to lose the building a few years ago we did a campaign called ‘I Heart MART’ and we got such a huge response. So many people were saying they’d be devastated if it was gone. We think the building is a subtle addition to Rathmines, but it probably means a lot to people.” Due to a lot of hard work behind the scenes, and in part to the outpouring of support for the building and the organisation, it looks like the immediate future is solid for the fire station. A ten year lease is in the pipeline, but more financial backing is needed for renovations and making the space an even better resource for the people of Dublin 6 and beyond. But Matthew is confident of MART’s future. “There are hundreds of different artists, scenes, collectives that come through here. We’re here trying to support the local community and create jobs, and that is really exciting.”
mart.ie
Issue One
60 seconds with Tony Strickland Of Ranelagh Arts Centre
Ranelagh Arts first launched in 2005, how has the arts scene in Ranelagh changed since then? It has become a very important part of the community. As you probably know it features art exhibitions, when we have the space, but we also have workshops, drama, book readings, book launches, historical talks. We are also really involved in Tidy Towns, so that has made a huge difference and the festival has grown in the past few years, there were 50 events this year.
What is your best memory of being involved in the arts in the area?
I am an independent curator and I put on visual art
exhibitions, about a dozen in the arts centre and at least a dozen acoustic gigs. There have been some wonderful events and some better than others, obviously [laughs]! And the collective which is a creative music and poetry, spoken word monthly concert in the back garden of the centre. They are some of my best memories. It was wonderful. It was curated, not an open mic, so the person behind The Collective organised who was playing.
Dublin is a city full of creative energy, do you think there is something special about being a creative person in Dublin?
It does have a huge amount of creative energy, its size is
one of the special things, you can get around easily and visit places.
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Words // Aoife Donnellan — Photography // George Voronov
It of course has a very good art college, that all
nine or ten a year. We will be doing a Christmas
helps, and it has quite a few art galleries also. It is
group show. We have been talking to the manager
always in a state of flux, but everyone still knows
of The Devlin also about using the cinema in the
each other. Artists can work together and inform
basement. Hopefully it will all pan out, it would be
each other and learn from each other. With NCAD,
really good for literary events, talks, workshops.
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DIT, Ballyfermot and Dún Laoghaire, there
That’s very resourceful, another sign
are loads.
of Ranelagh coming together to help What are the advantages of being on the
each other.
fringe of a capital city? Are there advantages
to being situated in a neighbourhood?
before it got a premises, so we are just going
Ranelagh Arts ran for three years
Absolutely, it is very near the city
back to that. It is important to have a main street
centre, but Ranelagh still has its own identity.
presence but we are still going on, and of course
We are on the Luas, but the village feeling is very
running the festival every September. My priority
important, especially to the residents. We are
is to keep the brand alive and not just every
exposed to the benefits too, like the theatre, etc.
September festival but regular events. It could be walks, could be talks… Ranelagh Arts will
You have a number of different spaces
continue. We get a generous grant every year for
on offer for different types of events.
the festival from Dublin City Council, we couldn’t
But what is the future like for Ranelagh
do it otherwise. It’s a community arts organisation,
Arts Centre?
that’s very important. There is a great backing from
local people who are very happy to be involved.
Well, we had to close the Ranelagh
Arts Centre this year because we can’t afford a market rent, so we agreed to move out after the festival this year at the start of October. Very sad of course. My background is the visual arts and I’ve been the chairperson since May. We are launching a fundraising initiative this month to enable us to rent a space where we could put on exhibitions and have an office. However, Framexperts has been taken over recently and the new owners are happy to accomodate exhibitions for us. We will have less because we don’t have staff anymore, but maybe
@RanelaghArts
Editor // Eric Davidson Design // Annie Moriarty Deputy Editor // Aoife Donnellan Sub-Editor // Hannah O'Connell Photography // George Voronov, Craig Connolly, Eoin Holland Illustration // Sally Caulwell