24.11.2026, 18:00 P.M.
This is the ninth talk in the Curating the Irish Country House autumn 2026 talks programme. The talks programme provides considerations of presentation and preservation of the Irish country house in the 21st century from public and private perspectives from both curators and custodians.
‘Much beyond any place I have seen in Ireland’: Re-presenting Ballyfin for the 21st Century by William Laffan is an art dealer and cultural historian
The restoration of Ballyfin, County Laois, long acknowledged as one of the outstanding neo-classical buildings in Ireland, was one of the most challenging, but ultimately successful, such projects ever completed in Ireland. Having served as home to the Coote family for a century and subsequently as a much-loved school, Ballyfin was transformed into one of the most acclaimed small hotels in the world. William Laffan, who worked on the restoration project from its inception, discusses how Ballyfin has been re-imagined for the 21st Century, and specifically explores the role that art has played in this process.
William Laffan is an art dealer and cultural historian. He is the author of many books on Irish art and architecture’, including Thomas Frye, an Irish Artist in London (2024). With Silvia Beltrametti, he recently curated an exhibition on graphic satire in Georgian London and Dublin at the Irish Architectural Archive and the Driehaus Museum, Chicago.
(All photos by James Fennell)
This one-hour talk takes place in person at 6pm on 24th November 2026 in the City Assembly House, 58 South William Street, Dublin 2, as well as live online.
Subscribers will be able to attend the talk in person at the IGS's City Assembly House or online live through Zoom. Additionally, all talk subscribers will receive a recording of the talk which can be watched for a two-week period after the date of issue. Please note that after the two week period the talk link will expire and cannot be reissued.
There will be a Q&A at the end of the talk. Those watching the talk live online can submit their questions through the Zoom Q&A function.
It is possible to book talks individually (€15 each) or book for the whole course for a discounted rate (€120).
The Society would like to acknowledge the generous support of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage's National Built Heritage Services of the Society's Conservation Education Programme of which Curating the Irish County House talks are an action. Additionally the Society wishes to thank The Heritage Council for their wider support of the Society's work through its Heritage Organisation Support Fund 2026.
