'In Search of the Donegal Vernacular Cottage' Exhibition

The County Donegal Heritage Office & Cultural Services, Donegal County Council in association with The Heritage Council presents:

Event:  ‘In Search of the Donegal Vernacular Cottage’ Exhibition

Venue:  An Gailearaí, Derrybeg, County Donegal

Dates:  November 2017 - present 

Times:  1 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. (Monday - Friday)

County Donegal is home to one of the largest surviving concentrations of vernacular cottages in Ireland.  ‘In Search of the Donegal Vernacular Cottage’ celebrates the traditional dwellings of County Donegal that help define our cultural landscape, refine our sense of place and reinforce our sense of identity.  Through photographs, illustrations and drawings from local and national collections, the distinctive forms and features of the Donegal vernacular cottage are highlighted.  Vernacular architecture has been described as an ‘architecture without architects’ alluding to the fact that these dwellings were not based on blueprints or measured drawings but on collective folk memory that was passed down from one generation to the next.  The intimate relationship between ‘form and function’ is reflected in the use of space and local materials that root these cottages in their physical and cultural landscape.  The exhibition is part-funded by Donegal County Council and The Heritage Council as part of the implementation of the County Donegal Heritage Plan and the 'Creative Ireland' programme.