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SEVEN STOREYS, BRIMFUL OF TALENT

Welcome to The Design Tower, where refinement has

been celebrated for over two centuries.

The Design Tower stands out in the 21st Century as

a beacon of good design – home to a vibrant

community of exceptionally gifted, award-winning

designers, artists and craftspeople. They are all highly

experienced professionals in creative businesses, who

operate in a totally approachable atmosphere. So you

can come in and meet directly with the key creative

people who actually make the work.

This ethos of creativity has been there from the

beginning. The Tower began life in 1862 as a sugar

refinery built by the renowned theatre architect,

Alfred Derbyshire. With the engineer Sir William

Fairbairn, he designed a distinctive building that was

a revelation for its time, innovative in its concept and

use of materials. In 1978, the IDA bought the Tower,

preserving and restoring it as the centrepiece of

their new Enterprise Centre which continues today

under the auspices of Trinity College.

The Tower’s modern history as a centre of design

goes back to 1983 when its restoration won a Europa

Nostra award, the first of many accolades, including

several commendations from the Royal Institute of

Architects in Ireland.

As a listed building with an impeccable pedigree, the

Tower continues to fascinate today. It’s a standardbearer

for fine design, among the best in Europe.

Now, the entire Docklands area is catching up: in the

coming years it will be transformed by cutting-edge

buildings from some of the world’s most original,

acclaimed and significant architects.

The seven-storey Design Tower is alive with talent.

In these pages, you’ll discover goldsmiths, jewellery

designers, ceramics artists, sculptors, painters, textile

conservationists, paper-conservationists, gallery

spaces, a delightful café and more.

We look forward to welcoming you in person.