This month the Arts Council announced the appointment of its new Director, Orlaith McBride who will take up office in September.  Best wishes go to Orlaith from all the Council and staff.

In this month’s edition we report on an 'Open Day' when Deputies and Senators were invited to the Arts Council to discuss support for the arts. They were briefed on the arts in Ireland, on the work of the Arts Council and the activities of local arts organisations in their constituencies. All political parties had representation on the day. Writer Roddy Doyle was in attendance, and he outlined the critical value of the arts in society.

The Arts Council is delighted to announce the availability of our new mobile app Culturefox. Culturefox, which is available online and downloadable free for iPhone, Android and Blackberry, was developed by the Arts Council, in collaboration with Fáilte Ireland and funded by the Government, as part of Government efforts to boost the creative sector and draw more tourists to Ireland. Minister Deenihan described Culturefox as an "exciting new initiative for Ireland’s arts and tourism sectors."

Also included in this month’s edition is news about the 54th Venice Biennale.   Corban Walker is presenting three new, site-specific sculptural installations at the Irish Pavilion, which is located at the Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà. Ireland’s participation at the Venice Biennale is an initiative of Culture Ireland in partnership with the Arts Council.

Elsewhere in the newsletter we include information on two funding awards; first is the Engaging with Architecture Scheme closing date Thursday, 21 July 2011. The purpose of the scheme is to support ambitious, innovative and creative, high-quality initiatives that specifically aim to enhance and extend the public’s experience of and engagement with architecture. This is a partnership scheme between the Arts Council and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, under the Government Policy on Architecture Implementation Programme 2009-2015. We also announce the deadline for the Deis Award - next closing date - 5:30 pm, Friday, 9 September 2011. Deis supports one-off or short-term projects only and core funding will not be granted under the scheme. Deis is open to individuals, groups, bands and organisations. Applications for projects involving activity addressing cultural diversity are welcome.

A reminder on the deadline for the next round of Bursary Awards is also included in this month’s edition. The award emphasises the value and benefit to an artist’s development that is derived from an extended process of engagement with their practice.

Finally, the newsletter rounds off with our regular article on international opportunities from the Cultural Contact Point.

Mary Cloake, Director
 
 

As part of the Arts Council's awareness-raising of the importance of the arts, on the 8 June last, the Chairman Pat Moylan, Director Mary Cloake, other staff and writer Roddy Doyle met representatives from the Dáil and Seanad Éireann over a three hour 'drop in day' at the Arts Council premises.

Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Jimmy Deenihan TD, together with Arts Council Chairman Pat Moylan have launched Culturefox, a pioneering new Irish cultural events guide that can be downloaded as a mobile phone app or used online, as part of Government efforts to boost the creative sector and draw more tourists to Ireland.

Ireland is represented at the 2011 Venice Biennale by the artist Corban Walker, working with commissioner Emily-Jane Kirwan and curator Eamonn Maxwell. The Irish exhibition was officially opened on 2 June by Minister Jimmy Deenihan TD. Ireland’s participation at the Biennale is an initiative of Culture Ireland in partnership with the Arts Council.

The Arts Council and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht announce the Engaging with Architecture Scheme 2011, with the purpose of engaging the public with architecture.

The next deadline for the Deis Award is 9 September 2011 for activity commencing between 21 October 2011 and 31 December 2011. The purpose of the Deis scheme is to provide support for traditional arts projects, or projects involving collaboration between the traditional arts and other artforms, that are in line with the Arts Council’s policy on the traditional arts.

The deadline for the next round of Bursary Awards is Thursday 14 July, 2011 at 5:30pm. The Arts Council provides Bursary Awards in order to assist individual artists in the development of their arts practice.

News from the CCP includes:INTERREG IVB North West Europe Programme – call for proposals expected. The 9^th call for proposals is expected to close in September / October 2011, with all programme priorities open for applications. We also have information about the Europa Nostra Awards 2012 (deadline 1 October 2011). Each year, Europa Nostra and the European Union reward the best of cultural heritage achievements. Finally, Creative Encounters: Cultural Partnerships between Asia and Europe. This is a new initiative that aims to support collaborative artistic projects in the framework of the Asia-Europe dialogue.