Art and the Outdoors is the Hugh Lane Gallery’s annual community celebration taking place on the street on Parnell Square North in the heart of the city.
Now in its fifth year, Art and the Outdoors is inspired by artists who moved out of their studio to paint en plein air or out of doors.
We look forward to seeing you!
Art and the Outdoors
Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025
Noon-4pm
Taking place over the August Bank Holiday we are celebrating the creative potential of our surroundings, our city, and our streets…on the doorstep of the Hugh Lane Gallery.
Through an exciting and family friendly programme of live music by incredibly talented musicians and performers, artist-led art workshops including life drawing and printmaking; Poetry bursts in collaboration with Poetry Ireland; face painting, street spectacle, storytelling, quiet and sensory spaces, illustrated talks and tours, HLG goodie bag spot prizes and more, we encourage you to take the time to look around you and be inspired!
Free, and for all ages! All welcome.
Keep an eye out here for further details
We look forward to seeing you!
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Music Programme Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025
We have a fantastic line up of live music to enjoy out of doors.
Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025, 12.15pm
Botanic String Quartet Founded by siblings Ciara and Shane Cavanagh in 2018, the Botanic String Quartet is inspired by the wonderful Botanic Gardens in Dublin, which is local to our home and is part of our daily lives. Botanic String Quartet’s music collection includes all genres and styles. We play classical music as well as jazz. We love performing film music and pop, and of course traditional Irish tunes too. From Beethoven to the Beatles, from Miles Davis to Maroon 5 and from Strauss to Sting, botanicstringquartet.com
Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025, 13.15pm
Dermot Dunne and Ariel Hernandez –Accordion /Guitar Duo. Many concert-goers will remember the duo of Argentinian guitarist and singer Ariel Hernandez with Irish accordionist Dermot Dunne who, between 2003-2010 brought the excitement and passion of Latin music to Irish audiences from the National Concert Hall to Belfast Opera House, Vicar Street, Farmleigh House, the Bray Jazz Festival, Dunlaoire Festival of World Cultures and beyond. Their duo intricately combined the soulful voice and playing of Ariel with the instrumental flair of Dermot in a range of styles from the familiar Tango to the lesser known Chacarera, Zamba and Chamamé. After returning to Argentina in 2010, Ariel relocated from his hometown of Buenos Aires to a remote town in the interior Carpinteria, a region is steeped in local tradition and art, where Latin influences blend with native styles, immersing himself in performing the music of the region with the finest local musicians, recording numerous albums and appearing at festivals throughout the region. Ariel and Dermot’s first album ‘P’al que se va’ takes its title from a song in which the singer tells a young man heading off to see the world that the road which takes him away is also the road that will bring him back. Now after many years, Ariel takes to the road once again to visit the place he called home 15 years ago for a reunion tour with his duo partner which will delight Irish audiences and in addition to the dances and songs of Ariel’s native land will also include well known classics from the baroque era to beloved cinema scores.@dermotdunne231 @arielhernandez_guitarra
Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025, 2.15pm
Lucie Azconaga and friends – French/Irish Traditional music
Traditional fiddler and singer, Lucie Azconaga (Varo) plays a lively traditional music set encompassing music from all corners of the world. She will be joined by very special guests. VARO are Dublin-based singers and fiddle players Lucie Azconaga (from France) and Consuelo Nerea Breschi (from Italy) who perform Irish traditional songs and tunes with arrangement influences from the Folk, Baroque and Classical traditions, weaving around the melodies with harmonies, drones and countermelody. The duo met in 2015 having moved to Dublin to pursue their love for Irish traditional music, and immediately started a fruitful collaboration. They travelled to Ireland along different musical paths, Lucie from jazz, classical music, and French folk, Consuelo from Irish trad, folk, and world music. Over the years they have had the pleasure of working in various projects such as Landless, Lisa O’ Neill’s Band, Ye Vagabonds, AlaSourCe and The Nomadic Piano Project. Their eponymous debut album was released in January 2020 to great critical acclaim. Since then, they have performed at numerous venues and festivals around Ireland and abroad, including Tradition Now at the NCH, Quiet Lights Festival, St.Patrick’s Festival, Dún Laoghaire Folk Festival, TradFest, Tonn Nua (Berlin), Fête de la Musique (CCI, Paris), and for productions such as the Late Late Show on RTE, or TG4’s ‘Samhlú’ hosted by Tommy Tiernan. @lucie.azconaga
Saturday 2 August and Sunday 3 August 2025, 3.15pm
Mariachi San Patricio – Dublin/Mexican Mariachi Band Founded in 2011, Mariachi San Patricio has been proudly celebrating the vibrant tradition of mariachi music in Ireland for over a decade. The band takes its name from the St. Patrick’s Battalion, an Irish regiment that fought for Mexico in the Mexican-American War of 1846–1848, symbolising the deep cultural connection between Mexico and Ireland. As Ireland’s only full mariachi ensemble, Mariachi San Patricio embodies this unique blend of traditions, bringing the soulful gritos of Jalisco to the Emerald Isle. A dynamic and evolving musical family, the group is composed of Mexican and Irish musicians who celebrate the fusion of their cultures. Their repertoire spans traditional Mexican songs, iconic Irish ballads, and globally recognised tunes, engaging audiences of all backgrounds with their joyful and inclusive performances. Over the years, the ensemble has been enriched by the contributions of talented musicians from Spain, the Basque Country, Venezuela, Colombia, and of course, Mexico, and Ireland. The ensemble has performed across Ireland and Northern Ireland, delighting audiences at major events such as Electric Picnic, Kaleidoscope, Culture Night, St. Patrick’s Festival, Fiesta del Sol, and Colour Carnival. They have also appeared on TG4’s documentary Éire Nua and shared the stage with legendary artists like Paddy Moloney, Jerry Fish, and Rod Stewart. Most recently, the band recorded an album of Irish songs reimagined in mariachi style, set for release in 2025—a testament to their ongoing mission to blend and celebrate Mexican and Irish culture. What began as a passion project to bring the spirit of Jalisco to Dublin has blossomed into a traveling fiesta of music, color, and joy. “A little piece of Mexico in the heart of Ireland.” mariachisanpatricio.ie
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Poetry Bursts in association with Poetry Ireland
We are delighted to be collaborating with Poetry Ireland again this year and are excited to have readings by poets Catherine Ann Cullen, Nell Regan and Ola Majekodunmi as part of Art and the Outdoors.
Saturday 2 August, 12.55pm – Catherine Ann Cullen
Catherine Ann Cullen was Poetry Ireland’s inaugural Poet in Residence and is an award-winning poet, children’s writer and songwriter. She is a recipient of the Patrick and Katherine Kavanagh Fellowship, a Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship, and bursaries from the Arts Council of Ireland and the Irish Writers Centre. She has twice won the Business to Arts Award for Best Use of Creativity in the Community. Other awards include the JoyceCycle Competition, Celebrating Women with Words, the Francis Ledwidge Poetry Prize (twice), and the Moth International Poetry Prize shortlist. Her eighth book, Storm Damage, is forthcoming from Dedalus Press in October 2025.
Saturday 2 August, 1.55pm- Nell Regan
Nell Regan is a poet, non-fiction writer and translator whose three collections include Preparing for Spring (Arlen House) and One Still Thing (Enitharmon Press). Awards include Arts Council Literature Bursaries, a Patrick and Katherine Kavanagh Fellowshipandshe was also a Fellow at the International Writers‘ Programme, Iowa. Her biography Helena Molony: A Radical Life, 1883 – 1967 (Arlen House) was an 2017 Irish Independent Book of the Year. Her latest book isA Gap in the Clouds: A New Translation of the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu (Dedalus Press) with James Hadley while her co-translation of Micheál Mac Liammóir’s Irish language poetry is forthcoming. A debut book for children,Just Jump, will be published by Wonderhouse Books later this year and she is currently working on her fourth collection, Thirty-Six Views of the Sugarloaf. Her collaboration with cellist and singer Mary Barnecutt can be found at www.eavesdrop.ie. Based in Dublin she runs poetry workshops for all ages and is a participant on the Basic Artist Income pilotscheme. See also www.nellregan.com
Sunday 3 August, 2.55pm- Ola Majekodunmi
Ola Majekodunmi was born in Lagos, Nigeria and raised in Dublin, Ireland. She is a broadcaster, writer, Gaeilgeoir, creative producer and workshop facilitator. She’s produced and spoken/performed at literary events with the likes of San Patrizio Livorno Festival, IASIL Conference, Dublin International Literature Festival, Cúirt International Festival of Literature, West Cork Literary Festival and Irish Writers Centre. Majekodunmi has performed her poems at home in Ireland and internationally in Italy and Egypt. Her poetry and prose work have been published in Cnámh & Smior, including poetry journals, magazines and zines such as COMHAR, Storms, Airmid and Blue Bodies. Majekodunmi writes primarily in Irish, English and Yoruba. She has also released poetry films with NÓS Magazine and Axis Ballymun, Dublin.
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Art Spaces
“You can’t do sketches enough.
Sketch everything and
keep your curiosity fresh.”
John Singer Sargent
Drawing Out of Doors
We invite you to look around you and sketch what you see! Draw from our Life Model and our artists have plenty of ideas and tips too for capturing nature, the outdoors, streetscapes and more. Drawing is a great way to discover more about the world around you. No experience required, for all ages and materials are provided.
Embossed and Screen Print-Making
Our professional artists include printmakers Janine Davidson and An Gee Chan. They will show you how to create a beautiful embossed print or a screen print by pressing simple shapes onto special paper. Look for inspiration in the patterns around you or from nature when composing your ideas. No experience required, for all ages and materials are provided. Curious Creatures Art Craft
We will use a variety of techniques to recreate some beautiful paper objects such as fans, creatures or paper insect-blossoms to wear and take way! Our artists are on hand to assist and suggest ideas.
“In drawing, nothing is better than the first attempt.”
Pablo Picasso
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Street Spectacle
From fabulous face painting, to Balloon artist and more have fun discovering what’s on offer at Art and the Outdoors. Entry our free draws at the outdoor Info Booth for a chance to win a Hugh Lane Goodie Bag! -
Quiet and Sensory Spaces
Location: Gallery 6, inside Hugh Lane Gallery
Seek sensory activities in our drop-in colourful cave gallery.
We will have a wall of sticky paper to put soft pom poms on, a large sheet of paper on the floor with colouring pencils and a fluffy blue seat. We can play or relax here for as long as we want. This is a room with green walls, it is softly lit and has wooden benches. We can find this space on the ground floor off the Sculpture Hall. There will be an artist there to help us if we need anything. One parent/guardian must stay with children.
Seek time alone in the outdoor Sensory Unit.
Location in an enclosed unit outside the Gallery.
Dublin City Council’s mobile outdoor sensory unit is built for individuals with sensory processing differences. This space is for one child accompanied by one parent/guardian. There are time slots that can be booked online.
This is an enclosed unit with soft, blue padded walls and floors, bubble units and low colourful lights. There will be an artist there to help us if we need anything.
One parent/guardian must stay with children.
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Art Talks and Tours
Discover more about our superb collection and exhibitions. Free, no booking required although numbers may be limited.
Come along to these enjoyable art talks and tours delivered by our expert guides and lecturers.
Saturday 2 August 2025
1pm Lunchtime Talk: Capturing Contemporary Life
Discover more about artists such as Walter Osborne, John Lavery and French Impressionist artists including Berthe Morisot who were inspired to move out of their studios and paint en plein air or out of doors to capture contemporary life both urban and rural during this illustrated art talk with Dr Anne Cormican.
Location: Gallery 18 Lectures Space, first floor.
2.30pm Guided Tour: Highlights of the Hugh Lane Gallery Collection
From magnificent stained glass by artists including Harry Clarke, Evie Hone and Wilhelmina Geddes to Francis Bacon’s studio, join Dr Anne Cormican on this guided tour delving into artworks from the collection.
Location: Meeting at Reception on the ground floor.
Sunday 3 August 2025
1pm Lunchtime Talk: Irish Artists and France
This illustrated talk with Yseult O’Driscoll will discuss the fascinating lure of France for 19th and 20th century Irish artists including Nathanial Hone, Frank O’Meara, Sarah Purser, Roderic O’Conor and more.
Location: Gallery 18 Lectures Space, first floor.
2.30pm Guided Tour: Highlights Tour
Join Yseult O’Driscoll on a guided tour exploring highlights of the Hugh Lane Gallery’s collection and temporary exhibition Ailbhe Ní Bhrian The Dream Pool Intervals
Location: Meeting at Reception on the ground floor.
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Storytelling
Storyteller Paul Timoney will share a tale or two!
Here’s what Paul says about his stories:
“I make all sorts of poems and stories for all sorts of people. I have stories for people who like to sit and listen quite quietly, and stories for people that prefer to jump about and join in. I have sensory stories for people who like tales which incorporate things to touch, taste, feel, smell and see… oh, and make and do too. I have fun stories, serious stories, sad stories, happy stories, old stories, new stories, tall stories, true stories, therapeutic stories, scary stories… and sometimes I just make up stories on the spot… so we’ll call those wait-and-see-stories”.
https://www.paultimoney.club/
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Art Trail
From join the dots to sound bingo have fun following this Art Trail at the Hugh Lane.
Art Trail at the Hugh Lane Gallery
Go on a hunt to find and explore about some of the fantastic artworks on view at the Hugh Lane Gallery in this cool Art Trail designed by artist Megan Scott.
Available from the HLG Reception or download the Art Trail here: Art Trail Final
Tip: When you are printing, click the print on short edge option and the pages will be in the correct order.