A fresh appreciation of  Irish art by locals—and others—has made Dublin a surprising hub of auction and fair activity. The venerable house James Adam and Sons set a record for an Irish-art auction two years ago when its quarterly sale in the category grossed nearly €7million ($9 million). It’s gunning to best that total on December 3 with a session featuring a portrait by the early 20th-century painter Paul Henry (est. €250–500,000; $320–640,000). Meanwhile, Eire has succumbed to fair mania like so much of the rest of the world: In September, the Dublin Art Fair made a successful debut with a focus on cutting-edge contemporary work. Add that to November’s Art Ireland, the country’s biggest fair, and you have a scene that must be seen.

"Hot Spot: Dublin" originally appeared in the December 2008 issue of Art+Auction. For a complete list of articles from this issue available on ARTINFO, see Art+Auction's December 2008 Table of Contents.