Butler Gallery

Butler Gallery is a leading contemporary art gallery and museum with a permanent collection in the South East of Ireland. Located in the heart of Kilkenny city, and established in 1943 by George Pennefather, Butler Gallery is a vibrant contemporary art gallery, in the historic Evans’ Home. Butler Gallery is committed to exhibiting the work of Irish and emerging artists, to bringing the work of major international artists to Kilkenny and consistently seeks to promote high artistic standards and the value of visual art to society.¹

In addition to a collection of 19th and 20th century Irish art, their contemporary exhibitions reflect the constantly changing nature of visual art practice and the range of media used in the making of contemporary work. The contrast between the permanent collection and the contemporary work provides an informative juxtaposition between past and present. This symbiotic connection between old and new is further echoed in the architectural approach taken to the renovation of Evans’ Home, as the new metal cladded addition sits comfortably beside the original early 19^th century limestone building and in doing so encourages us to engage with the past, the present and the future. ²