Dublin arts space The Complex launches petition to combat closure

Dublin arts venue The Complex is at risk of eviction on 14th January, and the venue has launched a petition urging Dublin City Council, politicians and The Arts Council to help secure its safety. 

A staple in the Irish capital’s art scene since 2008, The Complex hosts exhibitions, gigs, sober raves, and storytelling events, and remains one of the only large-scale independent  multidisciplinary arts centres in the city. Now, the venue has been served a notice to evict its north inner city home by 14th January, while fellow Dublin artist workspace Ormond Art Studios simultaneously announced the loss of its Ormond Street space in a major blow to the city’s cultural landscape. 

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The petition, which has gained over 12,500 signatures, said of the closure news, “Each time a space disappears, so does a community. Dublin doesn’t just have a housing crisis it also has a culture crisis. We’re losing the places where art happens, where new scenes form, where people come together.” The Complex’s gallery curator Mark O’Gorman added, “There isn’t going to be another place like this — a bridge-space where artists can take risks, experiment, and try things they can’t do elsewhere. Spaces like that are incredibly rare.”

A meeting for industry chiefs, artists, politicians, influencers, and activists will be held at the venue’s Depot on Thursday 11th December at 5:30pm to galvanise ideas, with representatives from Ireland’s Department of Finance invited to attend. You can sign the petition here. 

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