As part of Open House Dublin Festival of Architecture we invite you to join us on Sunday 20th October for newly developed audio described and tactile tours at the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland (RCSI), 26 York Street and Museum of Literature of Ireland (MOLI), Historic House. These tours, designed for blind and visually impaired visitors, invite you to explore architecture through an immersive hands-on experience.

Touch and Explore: Feel detailed models of the facade, floor plan and ornamental details that bring these buildings to life

Expert Guidance: Guides will provide clear and vivid descriptions throughout the tours adding to your experience

These tours have been developed with and will be led by Emilie Conway, vocal Jazz Artist & disability activist consultant, and Emma Gilleece, architecture historian. The tours will include tactile models of the facade, floor plans and the ornaments of the different rooms developed by architect Tadgh Charles.

Sunday 20th October: The tour will starts at MOLI at 1pm, followed by a break at the museum’s cafe (coffee, tea and pastries will be provided). The next tour takes place at the RCSI at 3.30pm.

Tickets can be booked by calling or texting 089 479 8085 or by email at bookings@architecturefoundation.ie.

Please email or phone us regarding your access needs or any questions you may have.

About the tour guides

Emilie Conway is a Vocal Jazz Artist and accredited art psychotherapist with the Irish Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy. Guide and facilitator of tours for visitors who are visually impaired at the RHA Gallery and the National Gallery of Ireland. Find more information at: https://www.emilieconway.ie/

Emma Gilleece is an architectural historian specialising in mid-twentieth-century Irish architecture which she writes about in her series ‘100 Buildings’ for RTÉ Culture.

About the 3d developer

Tadhg Charles is an architectural graduate specializing in emergent technology and its application as a critical design tool within a narrative based context. In conjunction with this he runs workshops focussing on integrating 3d printing and generative processes into creative practices. Find more information at: www.instagram.com/tadhg.charles/

About the buildings

Royal College of Surgeons Ireland (RCSI), 26 York Street: a state-of-the-art building that puts Ireland at the forefront of pioneering developments in the delivery of healthcare research and education. Spread over ten floors – six above ground and four subterranean, the building respects the Georgian Dublin area that surrounds it. RCSI‘s 26 York Street was the winner of the Public Choice category at the RIAI Irish Architecture Awards and was commended in the Universal Design category, RIAI Architecture Awards 2018.

Museum of Literature of Ireland (MOLI), Historic House: Explore the stunning surroundings and turbulent history of Numbers 85 and 86 St Stephen’s Green on MoLI’s Historic House Tour. These beautiful examples of Georgian opulence – with lavish stuccowork by the famous Lafranchini brothers – have served not only as a university and a museum, but also as the townhouse of Buck Whaley, one of Ireland’s most infamous playboys and adventurers.

AIRA

All Open House Dublin 2024 locations are supported by visual interpreting service Aira. Aira is a live, human-to-human professional assistance service, an accommodation or productivity tool, that enhances independence by delivering on-demand, skilled and reliable visual interpreting.Aira can assist with digital tasks including booking tickets for tours and events and assisting with website use. It can assist to navigate your surroundings while taking part in tours and events.

RCSI: There are wheelchair accessible doors into the building, and a wheelchair accessible turnstile. Lifts are available for access to each floor; plus disabled toilets are located on each floor.

MOLI: The museum and exhibition galleries are fully accessible on all floors. Accessible toilets and guide dogs are welcome. We can enter MoLI in three ways: We can enter the main entrance by climbing several steps or We can call the lift to street level, which will bring us down to the ground floor to enter MoLI. Please read MOLI’s Social Guide which may be helpful when planning your visit to MoLI.