The Arts Council has today launched a new website featuring all the visual art works in its collection.
The Collection was established in 1962 and is one of the most important National Collections in the Country. All of the pieces were collected while the artists were working, rather than a Museum where works are collected retrospectively. The Collection tells the story of modern Irish art as it developed over fifty years making it particularly fascinating. In 2012 we celebrated 50 years of the Collection with major exhibitions that ran throughout Ireland and a publication of the collection, Into the Light. At that time the full collection of over 1,000 works were digitised in preparation for making them web accessible.
Speaking at the launch, the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys said, “I am delighted to see the Arts Council embracing digitisation as a way of making art more accessible. This new website creates an online gallery and provides access to the entire Arts Council Collection in one digital location, making it much easier to discover and enjoy the work of a range of Irish artists”.
“The website will also be a very useful tool for art teachers, who will be able to use the site as a hub of information on Irish art over the last 53 years. The site not only showcases the works of art but tells the story of the artist who created each piece. An interactive feature also allows you to become an online curator, so you can pick your favourite pieces and create your own personal Arts Council Collection.”
The announcement follows the launch earlier this week of a new web portal, www.artsineducation.ie , to help drive progress under the Government’s Arts in Education Charter. The portal, which is supported by the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, will be the key national digital resource for arts and education practice in Ireland.
Also speaking at the event, Chair of the Arts Council, Sheila Pratschke, said, “We are so pleased to be able to launch this website today. Our Collection provides a window into the development of Irish art since the early sixties. We are very keen that everybody can explore and enjoy it. Our Collection of over one thousand works from Ireland’s finest and most accomplished visual artists can be seen in public buildings the length and breadth of the country.”
“If you know of a public building or institution that might want to access a piece from the collection there are details of how to do so on the Collection home page. This is the public’s collection and this is why the Arts Council has been so determined to make it fully accessible to everyone. Although sometimes the Collection is not so well known because the Arts Council doesn’t have its own gallery space, most of the works are on public display in schools, libraries, hospitals and public institutions throughout the country.”
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