Assembly is inspired by Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly and the design, crafted in Irish beech, with a Ceadogán rug at its centre, is a multi-sensory installation that offers visitors a soundscape to be inhabited and a space to be heard. Circular, modular and relatively small in scale, it facilitates non-hierarchical communication between strangers.
The event will also feature a film directed by Michelle Delea, which documents the production of the pavilion from conception to completion.
Presented in the public concourse of Busáras, a landmark of Irish modernist architecture, during the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Assembly becomes a space for encounter. Within this setting, the installation will be the focus of a public programme on arts and culture, centred around the concept of ‘assembly’ to facilitate broad-ranging discussions on topics of contemporary resonance. Over the course of four weeks, visitors will be invited to come together to pool knowledge, exchange ideas, and openly debate proposals for our collective future with participation from citizens in Ireland and across the EU.
Engagement and inclusivity are central to the programme, which will foster connections with the local community and invite participation across disciplines and perspectives, connecting local experience with national and European contexts. In bringing people together, Assembly reflects the wider ambition of Cultúr 2026: to create spaces where Ireland’s culture is supported to continually evolve through encounter, dialogue, and exchange.
The Ireland at Venice exhibit Assembly was Ireland’s national representation in 2025 at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition, the Venice Biennale. Commissioned by Culture Ireland in partnership with the Irish Arts Council, the exhibit was curated by Cotter and Naessens Architects, and their team comprised architects Louise Cotter and David Naessens, multidisciplinary artist Michelle Delea, woodworker Alan Meredith, curator Luke Naessens and sound artist David Stalling.
The presentation of Assembly at Busáras is a joint partnership between Culture Ireland, the Arts Council and the Office of Public Works, in association with CIÉ/ Bus Éireann, as part of the Culture Programme for the 2026 Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.