On 20 September, as part of Culture Night 2024 celebrations RCSI is delighted to welcome members of the public to ‘Intersections: Surgeons, Medicine and Art’; a night to celebrate art and the role it plays within the health sciences.

This evening will introduce RCSI’s rich, varied and diverse art collections, highlighting some of the key historical as well as contemporary pieces within it. RCSI has been engaged with the practices of commissioning, purchasing and displaying the work of artists for over 230 years. Now in its ninth year, the RCSI Art Award celebrates the long-standing association between art, medicine and well-being. Details of the award can be found here.

Watch the video here

Guests to RCSI are welcome to view the art collections at their own leisure between 5.30pm-8pm. Alternatively join a tour.

Tours of the RCSI Art Collection

There will be three tours, each lasting 25-30 mins, of the art collections on Culture Night.

The first tour, ‘Portrait Sculpture’, will commence at 5:30pm

Susan Leyden, Archivist, RCSI Library will introduce RCSI’s portrait sculpture collection, which spans from the 18th and 19th century right up to current years. The collection includes sculpture portraits by prominent Irish sculptors including female sculptor Kathleen Shaw, as well as more recent commissions by contemporary Irish sculptor John Rainey. They are housed and displayed in the light-filled Atrium space and the Front Hall.

The second tour, ‘RCSI Art Award’, will commence at 6:15pm

Jess Handy, Digital Archivist, RCSI Library will give a tour of the RCSI Art Award and will be showcasing some of the wonderful art commissions that have arisen from it. The RCSI Art Award in association with the RHA and The Irish Times was established in 2016. It celebrates the long-standing relationship between art and medicine and recognises the role of the arts as a fundamental component of good health and wellbeing. It allows us to evolve our understanding of this relationship in a way that nurtures artistic talent and strengthens RCSI’s support of the arts in Ireland through our partnership with the RHA. The RHA Annual Exhibition is Ireland’s largest and longest running open-submission exhibition. Each year, five works are shortlisted from the Annual for the RCSI Art Award and a winner is selected from this shortlist. 

The last tour, ‘Portraiture in the Boardroom’, will commence at 7pm

Professor Una Sealy, Member of Royal Hibernian Academy; Professor of Art, RCSI, will give a tour of RCSI’s portrait collection, which includes pieces from the 19th century to more contemporary commissions. Learn more about the people represented in these portraits and the contributions they have made to the development of healthcare in Ireland and abroad. The tour will also include a special viewing of the award-winning Women on Walls portrait series, showcasing extraordinary women in RCSI history. It will take place in the historic Boardroom, which overlooks St Stephen's Green.

More information

The meeting point for all tours is in St Stephen's Green Front Hall, RCSI (opposite the St Stephen's Green Luas stop). Please arrive five minutes before tour commences. 

Discover RCSI’s art initiatives, presented in an exclusive video reel taking place in the Albert Lecture Theatre, while musical performances will set the tone of celebration on the evening.  

We have created a social story to help you find your way around RCSI art collections. You can access the document here.