Dalkey Heritage Centre and Town Hall
Goat's Castle and Town Hall is located in Dalkey Village. The castle building is a protected structure, and togethre with the adjoining graveyard, a Recorded National Monument. The complex is a very popular cultural attraction which hosts a multitude of events including writers’ festivals, exhibitions, and theatre performances. Its thoughtful renovation reveals its history to the visitor and has strengthened its use as a cultural facility for the County.
A philosophy of subtly exposing the original structure guided interventions. The existing walls of the Castle tower room which had lay hidden under render were opened up to reveal layers of history in the original stonework including an unusual barrel vaulted roof with 15th century wickerwork shuttering and victorian interventions in brickwork. These elements were left exposed, repointed and highlighted with new lighting and now form part of the architectural interpretation of the space. In the Town Hall decades of ad hoc additions were removed and a palate of neutral tones was adapted throughout. Walls and the elaborate timber roof truss system now merge together and are carefully modelled both by natural and new lighting. The outcome is a space that is serene and calm.
The project was highly commended in the RIAI Irish Architecture Awards 2015.
Gallery
