Northern Ireland

Salvador Dali leads Art In The Garden exhibition spectacular at Culloden Hotel

Jeremy Kevan and Trevor Kelso from the Culloden Hotel launch the 'Art In The Garden' exhibition
Jeremy Kevan and Trevor Kelso from the Culloden Hotel launch the 'Art In The Garden' exhibition Jeremy Kevan and Trevor Kelso from the Culloden Hotel launch the 'Art In The Garden' exhibition

THE largest collection of Salvador Dali's works seen in Ireland as well as collections from Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso and Banksy are to go on show at the Culloden Hotel outside Belfast.

Fourteen pieces from the Dali Universe in Switzerland containing more than 120 sculptures, some of which are valued up to €500,000 will be on display at the 'Art In The Garden' exhibition.

The art will be exhibited at the Culloden Hotel from June 15 to 30.

Organised in conjunction with Gormleys Fine Art, it has been described as the "finest collection of sculpture to be displayed on the island of Ireland".

There will be rooms devoted to Warhol and street artist Banksy and a modern masters collection featuring Picasso, Miro and Lucien Freud.

Other artists featured include Damien Hirst, Robert Indiana, Grayson Perry, Tom Wesselmann, Keith Haring, Julian Opie and Irish sculptors and artists such as Peter Monaghan, Stephen Johnston and Ian Pollock.

Hastings Hotels managing director Howard Hastings said: "Art in the Garden will give art lovers a unique opportunity to view these incredible pieces of work in the beautiful surroundings of the Culloden Estate and Spa.

"We have worked with Gormleys Fine Art in organising the exhibition and I am confident that visitors will truly appreciate the collection of work that has been put together."

Meanwhile, art will be unveiled to the public for the first time when Hillsborough Castle opens to the public today.

The royal residence and stately setting for political deal-making has undergone a £24 million five-year refurbishment.

Curator Dr Christopher Warleigh-Lack said: "While the focus has been in other places such as Stormont for instance, a lot of the private negotiation and the reflection took place here at Hillsborough Castle.

"Of course, a number of the key moments during the peace process such as the Anglo-Irish peace agreement in 1985, the Hillsborough Agreement for instance, they were all signed here.

"We very much want to tell those stories to our visitors, it is much, much more than a royal residence."

Tours of the house will allow visitors to take in the artistic, political and royal history.

Laura McCorry from the castle said part of the Royal Collection of art was housed at Hillsborough with some pieces going on display that have "never been seen before by the public".

She said the castle had been elegantly and beautifully restored and an outdoor refurbishment carried out.