Berkeley Library Tour 12:00

Join us in celebrating 50 years of the Berkeley Library. Widely regarded as Ireland's finest modernist building and beloved of many architects, the Berkeley is a brutalist gem that looks as good now as when it opened 50 years ago. The elders of Trinity wanted a building that spoke to the 20th century to sit between the 18th century Old Library and the 19th century Museum Building – and speak to the 20th century it certainly does. Designed by Paul Koralek at the tender age of 28 without setting foot in Ireland, it was the first building he created, built in-situ by master builders G. & T. Crampton using concrete poured into Douglas fir formwork, and fitted out by legions of artisans. Now part of a larger complex of three linked library buildings, it remains one of the most stunning buildings in Dublin and provokes a love/hate reaction in all who see it.