Month: February 2008

Brennan shows us the money

brennan.jpgThe Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism yesterday unveiled the ‘Arts and Culture Plan 2008’ which includes details of funding available from the Department for 2008. The pledge of an additional €40 million towards increasing arts access and participation is included in Thursday’s announcement, along with a full listing of other allocations and initiatives.

Access is clearly the dominant issue: the extension of opening hours for National Institutions has been made a precondition of their increased funding; a new ‘National Cultural Day’ has been mooted; and the document states that as the Arts Council reviews its progress under the current ‘Partnership for the Arts’ plan ‘The Minister will issue a policy instruction to the Arts Council to request that … a strong emphasis is placed on the development of audiences, access to the arts, contemporary dance, choral music, access to musical instruments and actor training.’

The second major theme is probably investment into infrastructure and capital projects, including: support for the National Concert Hall extension, Abbey Theatre relocation, Collins Barracks extension, National Library extension, refurbishment of the Druid in Galway, extension to Gate Theatre, establishment of Irish Chamber Orchestra headquarters, new opera house for the Wexford Festival Opera, five new centres for Comhaltas Ceoltóiri Éireann, the refurbishment of the RHA, revival of the Smock Alley Theatre in Temple Bar, and of course the ACCESS programme.

Wherefore art thou Irish construction slow-down? Apparently not in the arts sector.

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Rule Brittania, capital of culture?

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Lots of buzz around the British government’s upcoming Green Paper to be launched next week, which reportedly includes plans to turn the UK into the ‘world’s creative hub’– proposing a £200 million national film centre, a “world creative economy forum”/conference, a new apprenticeship scheme for the creative industries, and five hours a week cultural education available to all children, amongst a long list of initiatives (for a full summary see The Times). This is the most ambitious set of cultural policy proposals in recent years, largely focused around the creative industries– however response has ranged from the wildly enthusiastic to the deeply cynical.

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Checking into the Mountjoy Hilton

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What’s next for the 19th century landmark Mountjoy Prison, now that it faces closure and the transferral of its inmates to a more modern facility? Heritage centre? Museum? Nope– the OPW has other plans in mind:

Mountjoy may provide jail break for tourists

The rooms might currently be a little on the small side – as are the windows – but Mountjoy could become one of the most exclusive places to stay in Dublin following a new proposal to turn the prison into a boutique hotel, writes Olivia Kelly .

Guests would be staying, at their own pleasure rather than the State’s, in the original late 19th-century institution, the main structure of which cannot be altered by order of the Office of Public Works (OPW), once the current residents move to the new prison due to open at Thornton Hall in north Dublin in 2011. (more…)

2008 Allianz Business to Arts Award Competition Launched

b-to-a-rgb7_copy221.jpgToday the award categories were announced, and include a new commission for a €10,000 bursary for an artist who is gaining experience in the field of commissioning. The nature of the awards has slightly changed from previous years, moving beyond traditional sponsorship relationships towards celebrating business and arts organisations that work together, use good practice in commissioning or use the arts in an innovative way.

Awards available to practicing artists and arts organisations include:

  • The Jim McNaughton/Tylestyle Bursary for Commissioned Artists – An annual €10,000 bursary, for an artist who is gaining experience in the field of commissioning (New Award)
  • Best Arts Champion – for an individual who has shown innovation and creativity in responding to the challenges of developing relationships with business (New Award)
  • Dublin Airport Authority €5,000 Arts Award – an award for an arts organisation which rewards great relationship management and imagination in working with the corporate sector
Full details are available on www.businesstoarts.ie, and details of nominations can be downloaded here.
Thanks to Andrew Hetherington (MA, ’07) and Business to Arts Project Director, for passing this information on.

International Symposium on “Sharing Our Heritages: New Challenges for Site Conservation, Protection and Tourism Management”

Coming up in early Feb, this conference takes place in Valencia, Spain and addresses a wide spectrum of heritage issues.

Themes for discussion include:

  • Globalization and Challenges for World Heritage;
  • Public/private partnership: A concept for efficient conservation policies?
  • Conflicting visions between donors and conservationists (natural heritage)
  • Conflicting visions between donors and conservationists (cultural heritage);
  • How can conflicting interests between international conventions strategies and local communities’ policies be resolved?
  • How may sustainability match strategies for World Heritage sites commercialization?
  • Preventive conservation: an innovative strategy for sustainability?
  • The limits of Heritage interpretation for visitors.