100 Years of Women in Politics and Public Life 1918–2018 – a ‘pop-up’ museum

This ‘pop-up’ museum was launched in December 2018, by Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Josepha Madigan TD on the centenary of the landmark 1918 General Election.

The exhibition is curated by the historian, Sinéad McCoole for the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht as part of the Decade of Centenaries programme.

The opening of the exhibition coincided with the culmination of Vótáil 100, a programme developed by the Houses of the Oireachtas to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the parliamentary vote for women in Ireland..

While politics is a major feature of the ‘pop-up’, it also showcases how Irish society changed throughout the twentieth century and how this gradually opened up opportunities for women to participate in public life in Ireland.

Using clothes, newspapers, election paraphernalia, letters and interactive displays, visitors gain an insight into the issues tackled in each decade of the last century.

Opened originally in the Coach House at Dublin Castle, the exhibition then moved to Istabraq Hall in Limerick City, and is currently housed in the Donegal County Museum in Letterkenny.  It will next be seen in Roscommon County Hall from July-September 2019 and in February 2020 the exhibition will return to the Coach House at Dublin Castle.

(All images: Courtesty of Ros Kavanagh for the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht)