Come Fly With Me

Come Fly With Me: Aviation, tourism and Irish design examines Irish cultural history through the exploration of aviation- and tourism-related graphic design. It focuses on the 1940s through to the 1960s, a period that marked the golden era of international aviation expansion.

Aer Lingus was established in 1936 by Seán Lemass who often said it was his proudest achievement and ‘a real instrument of liberation for this country’. Indeed, the foundation of a national airline a mere fourteen years after independence was hugely ambitious and politically potent, connecting Ireland both physically and ideologically with the rest of Europe.

This exhibition uses flight as a central thread to explore how design and print helped construct national identity, promote Irish modernisation and position Ireland internationally. With the arrival of a number of Dutch graphic designers to Ireland in the 1950s to work on advertising for Aer Lingus, depictions of Ireland and Irishness were forever changed, as was Ireland’s relationship to Continental Europe and the US. Their design work was recognised internationally, had a huge impact on Irish design and economic development, and was commissioned by other Irish companies including Bord Fáilte, John Hinde, RTÉ and Guinness.

Come Fly With Me, sponsored by AviLease with research funded through the Research Ireland New Foundations programme, displays a wide array of tourism ephemera and original sketches, on loan from national cultural institutions, the families of designers, and members of the public who responded to a call for material. Many of these items are being displayed publicly for the first time. The exhibition tells a story of aspiration, imagination, and modernisation through the enduring power of print advertising.

The exhibition runs at the National Print Museum in Dublin from 17 July to 17 December 2026. Admission is free and all are welcome. Opening hours: Tuesday – Friday (10am-4pm), Saturday & Sunday (12noon-4pm).

Curator’s Tours will take place on Thursday 30 July at 19.00 and Thursday 24 September at 19.00. Visit the What’s on section of the website to purchase a ticket (€6/€5 concession).

Exhibition sponsor: AviLease

Research Funding: Research Ireland New Foundations