National Gallery of Ireland by Ritika Ratnawat

Even people who aren’t interested in art or museums tend to have the famous Ireland Museum on their to-do list when they visit Dublin.

Ireland has beautiful monuments, buildings and gardens all around the country. National Gallery of Ireland, established in August 1854, the gallery has the greatest art and creativity portrayed from world’s finest artists from the 14th century till date. The museum has more than 10k paintings of different mediums and art forms. Artists can be seen sketching live and the tinge of live music making the environment mesmerizing. The place has an aura that an art lover wouldn’t leave the place for hours.

The paintings, sketching and sculptures not only surprise you, but they take you back to the time where all the greats use to paint and showcase their creativity. The best part about this place is that one can sit and do the art – be it any kind – from music to brush art to nail art. It’s open for one and all and completely free – because they promote creativity, and do not sell it. At any time of the day one can witness people in front of them holding their cameras up to snap photos and capture the moment.

The entrance of the museum in itself is a great piece of artwork. Smallest and finest work of architecture can be seen just by a 360 degree view.

Tourists, art lovers are welcomed from all parts of the world. Just outside the main entrance anyone can sit-along and showcase their art and painting.

Entering the museum, the lively atmosphere is not only soothing to the eyes but also the ears. As soon as one is caught up with the vivid artists of various fields, sketches and painting the music and lively atmosphere won’t fail to impress you either.

One can witness the stories in the paintings such as: There are villain players on whose tune was another artist making sketches of still objects while others were sketching the girl who was singing – the perfect place defining the interrelation of the kinds of art and their beauty.

Then there was another:A painting which is put in such a beautiful way that is showcases “a painter who is sketching a painter with a brush, who is actually painting on a wall which has a lady with a glass of wine”

There are bewildered but interesting passages connecting the hallways! You are so caught up and amazed by the aura that you tend to visit the same hall many times ! but fear not, the museum is well mapped and professional (human) and interactive guides are available to escort you through to get the most out of your visit.

Further there are paintings hanging on the beautiful walls, itself representing beauty of ancient Europe. The paintings are mainly on oil mediums, because of its massive popularity then. There are different textures added to the paintings on the basis of place, light and scenery.

The night ones with candle lights are the ones I found most beautiful.

There are few sculptures too from the old European era made mainly from plasters

The Museum tells so many stories – from the impeccable artwork it is home to, to the building itself – you’ll feel as though you are as close to touching history as humanly possible.

Further inside the galleries stretched infinite hallways of paintings, sculptures, and high ceilings. Staring into a painting, or at each carved detail of a marble statue will draw you in at any time of the day.

Ritika Ratnawat is : An aspiring artist, nature lover, a wanderer and a big fan of stories. She is a software engineer by profession and loves to explore different art forms-watercolor, gouache being her favourite. She believes art is everywhere which makes things joyful. You can get in touch with Ritika Ratnawat on @colorsmelange