A FESTIVAL to mark the Chinese new year, starting next Friday, will be the first major series of events held in Temple Bar’s Meeting House Square since it was rendered weatherproof by four giant “umbrellas”.
Announced by Dublin’s lord mayor, Cllr Andrew Montague, the festival will include a carnival and Chinese “Opera in the Open” to inaugurate the Year of the Dragon.
Temple Bar Cultural Trust said the retractable overlapping “umbrellas” would provide greater comfort for people at events and the weekly food market.
Designed by Seán Harrington Architects, the new rainscreen over the square is raised on four 21m masts topped by cylindrical lights. Each mast, including the “umbrella”, weighs around 14 tonnes.
Their shape, when closed, was inspired by a bullrush; opened up, they are meant to evoke a flower. Rainwater is drained through the masts and the “umbrellas” are tilted to minimise the risk of drips.
At full stretch, each measures 11 metres square. Manufactured by MDT-Tex in Germany, the tensile membrane is not canvas but PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) and has an anticipated lifespan of 20 years.
According to Temple Bar Cultural Trust, the redevelopment of Meeting House Square cost €2.4 million, including an extensive archaeological excavation, most of it funded by Fáilte Ireland.
Lorraine Maye, the trust’s cultural events programmer, said the new canopy meant that square “can be used more often, by more people, for more events”.
The first event held under the canopy was a screening of the musical Singing in the Rain.
