Free art lectures with slides are scheduled to take place each week between now and mid-November at the National Gallery of Ireland. The lecture topics range from Baroque art to Irish modern art and this Thursday, September 16th, a lecture on the early Renaissance will take place. All talks are held at 5 pm and last for one hour. Free tours of the museum are also available at the gallery. Tours must be booked by teachers by writing to the Museum three weeks in advance. A special tour for Transition Year students is available at the museum as is a talk on putting a portfolio together. The portfolio days will be held on November 6th and 13th. The fee is £12. Other talks, designed as a refresher course for exam students, start in February. The fee per day is £8. For more information on activities in the National Gallery contact Liz Coman on 01 6615133.
Agri Aware has been bringing a mobile farm around schools teaching children about life on a farm and where food actually comes from. Cows, sheep, their foodstuff and crops are part of the experience primarily aimed at schools far removed from country life. The cost of hiring the mobile farm would be at most £250. For more details about the mobile farm contact Thomas Keane on (01) 4601103.
An exhibition which tells story of some of the churches in Dublin city is running at the Dublin Civic Museum, South William Street, until the end of October. The exhibition features manuscripts, records, prints, drawings, photographs and printed material relating to the churches. The Dublin City Churches ReVisited exhibition is open between 10 am and 6 pm from Tuesday to Saturday and 11 am to 2 pm on Sundays. Tours of the exhibition can be arranged by contacting Dr Susan Hood at (01) 4923979. Admission to the exhibition is free.
A calendar detailing the major dates of the various religions around the world is available from Access Ireland, a refugee social integration project. The calendar was put together by refugees living in Ireland and is aimed at schools to help teach pupils about special days for other religions. For information about the calendar call (01) 8780589. The calendar costs £3.
Budding horologists may be interested in taking up places still available on a diploma in watch-making offered by the Irish Swiss Institute of Horology, under the auspices of Dublin Vocational Education Committee, in Blanchardstown, Dublin. The fee is £150 per annum. Tel: (01) 821 3352 for details).
