The Arts Council is pleased with its 2012 Budget allocation from Government. Given the financial difficulties facing the Government and our country at this time, the Arts Council appreciates the work done by Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to minimise the cut to the Arts Council - containing it to a 3.2% reduction on last year’s allocation. The Arts Council will continue to do its utmost to maximise the value to the public and to the arts community of the funds it has to invest next year but a 3.2% reduction will have an impact on the sector.

In this month's edition we have an update on our main grants process and the next stage of that process will involve the assessment of applications that have been received under our three main funding programmes, Regularly Funded Organisations, Annual Programming Grants and Annual Funding.  We also have an update on the Arts Council's position on opera and the new policy and opportunities that are in place to support opera next year and beyond. There are details about our Bursary awards which supported over 150 individual artists in 2011 and we also announce details of the 66 small festivals and events which are receiving financial support in 2012 (Round One). Details of the Project awards for 2012 (Round One) are also provided and there will be much to look forward to with some very exciting initiatives planned for 2012 by individual artists and companies. Deadline reminders are given for next year - for Small Festivals (Round Two); Bursaries and Deis (Round One). Arts Audiences has published two new reports involving work undertaken by Galway Arts Festival, Linenhall Arts Centre, Castlebar and the Model, Sligo and we have some information in our regular news from the arts community section.

The Cultural Contact Point (Ireland) which is based here at the Arts Council has information about the new Creative Europe programme launched recently by the European Commission. It has a proposed budget of €1.8 billion for the period 2014-2020.

Wishing you a happy and peaceful New Year.

Yours sincerely

Orlaith McBride, Director

The application window for the Arts Council’s three main grant programmes: Regularly Funded Organisations, Annual Programming Grants and Annual Funding has now closed. This relates to applications seeking funding for the period April 2012-March 2013.  The Arts Council’s Budget 2012 figure (current) has been provided - €63.1 million.

The Arts Council has adopted a new policy on opera which sets out how it intends to promote and develop opera in Ireland.  In delivering its policy there are some new developments which aim to widen the availability of opera to Irish audiences and to create exciting opportunities for artists, producers and venues to work together in creating opera.  

Some of Ireland’s most talented and promising writers, musicians, film-makers, visual artists and dancers received a bursary from the Arts Council in 2011. A total of 152 individual artists from across the country received grants through the Council’s Bursary award. The deadline for the next round of Arts Council Bursary Awards is Thursday 19 January, 2012 at 5:30pm.

Details of Arts Council allocations under its Project award for 2012, Round One are now available. This award supports specific projects in different artform areas commencing in 2012. The Arts Council received 222 applications for Round One. Forty eight awards have been made. 

Sixty six small festivals and events have been awarded funding for 2012 under the Arts Council's Small Festivals Scheme (Round One). A total of €401,650 has been awarded to 66 festivals - from Dingle to Drogheda and from Lismore to Westport - from 122 applications received. The total value of the funding sought by all 122 applicants was €1.5m.

The Arts Council’s Small Festivals Scheme is designed, in the main, to support and provide opportunities for small arts festivals or events happening throughout the country. Under the scheme, organisations may apply for funding up to a maximum of €20,000. In 2011, the scheme funded 163 small festivals to the value of €863,399. There is a February deadline for Round Two of the scheme for 2012.

The deadline for Deis, Round One, 2012 will be Thursday 9 February 2012. Deis is a scheme aimed at encouraging and facilitating the traditional arts community to seek funding from the Arts Council for a range of projects. The Deis funding window will open the week of 12 January 2012, at which point guidelines and criteria will be available. Further upcoming deadlines for Deis will be published on the Arts Council website next year.  

Arts Audiences has published reports about two of its schemes. These are the report of Galway Arts Festival involving their mentoring by Google for the use of Google Adwords. This “how to” guide includes campaign results. The second report involves the Linenhall Arts Centre in Castlebar and the Model in Sligo. They were mentored and guided by marketing consultant, Annette Nugent, in how to make their organisations more visible and attractive to visitors.

We have news in this section about the 2012 North Atlantic Fiddle Convention (NAFCo) which recently received funding under the Arts Council's Traditional Arts Project Award; some detail about the Music Generation project and from the Contemporary Music Centre, about their latest CD, launched by the Director of the Arts Council, Orlaith McBride.

News from the Cultural Contact Point Ireland (CCP) includes information about the new Creative Europe programme launched by the European Commission at the end of November. It has a proposed budget of €1.8 billion for the period 2014-2020. The Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) has now published the e-forms for the upcoming round of Strand 1.2.2: literary translation projects. EU support for Literary translation is aimed at enhancing knowledge of the literature and literary heritage of fellow Europeans. We have web links to a funding initiative by Fáilte Ireland and a new website at the Centre of Professional Training in Culture. We have details of the Asolo International Art Film Festival 2012 and the presentations are now online from Create's October Art and Civil Society Symposium held in Cork.