I worked in Dun Laoghaire for about fifteen years in total and most of my co-workers from the town and nearby objected strongly to the planning and construction of this building while I thought that it was an excellent idea.
The DLR Lexicon Building houses the main public library and cultural centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council (DLR CC). It has attracted controversy, with opponents critical of its massive façade and its €36.6m cost at a time of austerity in Ireland, and supporters praising its interior, usability, and environmentally responsible construction.
The site chosen was Moran Park, a partially derelict public park with bowling green, running perpendicular to the coastline down an escarpment. I was based there [Marconi House] for about two years back in the 1970s and more recently I was based in Haigh Terrace and by then Moran Park had become a no-go area at night because of anti-social activity relating to drugs. We were advised by management not to be in the immediate area after 7pm.
The site was chosen because it was already owned by DLR CC and would link The Metals (Queens Road) on the busy seafront to the north with George’s Street.
NOTE: Guglielmo Marconi sent the results of the Kingstown [now Dun Laoghaire] regatta from a steam tug named The Flying Huntress beyond Dún Laoghaire harbour to his assistant and shore receiver in the Harbourmaster’s house [Marconi House], which currently houses the Design Gallery between the Lexicon library and the Pavilion complex. This was the very first time wireless technology was used in journalism.
DUBLINBIKES DOCKING STATION 32 ON PEARSE STREET AT THE SCIENCE GALLERY DUBLIN
Some of the dates include below are in the past but this is the most recent description that i could find.
The Science Gallery Dublin is located within the Naughton Institute of Trinity College Dublin, which opened in early 2008. Prof. Mike Coey had championed the inclusion of gallery space in the Naughton Institute as a place to host exhibitions on science and talks. At its launch, Michael John Gorman was the gallery’s director and Lynn Scarff was Education and Outreach manager. Scarff subsequently served as director from 2014 to 2018. Ann Mulrooney was then appointed as director in December 2018.
The goal of the gallery is to host a programme of exhibitions, workshops, and events to engage people aged 15–25 with science and technology. Since its opening the Gallery has received funding and support from Google.
In 2011 the gallery attracted 242,000 visitors, in 2014 that had risen to 400,000, and has seen a total of 1.8 million visitors from 2008 to 2014. The gallery was featured on a limited edition 2015 An Post stamp, which was part of a series along with the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition, celebrating recent Irish scientific achievements.
The remit of the gallery has expanded over the years, with it now organising events such as TEDxDublin and Dublin Maker. Some of the exhibitions now travel internationally, with Illusion travelling to San Diego, and Biorhythm exhibited in Taiwan.
Science Gallery Dublin is now part of an international group – the Global Science Gallery Network – administrated by Science Gallery International (SGI), which has the aim of setting up eight similar galleries across the world by 2020, supported by Google and the Wellcome Trust. The first of which will be in London in collaboration with King’s College London, and is due to open in 2016. In 2014, the plans for a Science Gallery in Bangalore, India were announced, with the gallery planned to open in 2018, Science Gallery Melbourne with the University of Melbourne was announced in 2016. The SGI has an agreement to open a gallery with the City College of New York and in late 2016 announced Science Gallery Venice with Ca’ Foscari in Venice.
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