Vol. 444 No. 5
16 Mr. Connor asked the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht the major art exhibitions or exhibitions of objets d'art of international significance which will be brought to Ireland for public display in 1994; his views on whether this country is rarely a destination for such major travelling exhibitions due to lack of facilities; and the plans, if any, he has in this regard.
I propose circulating in the Official Report a list of some international art exhibitions which have or will be brought to this country during 1994. I consider that this country has established itself in recent years as an eminently suitable destination for touring exhibitions. One has only to recall the "Emperor's Warriors" and the "Kremlin Gold" Exhibitions to appreciate the quality of the material we have been attracting. While I am satisfied that we have some suitable facilities and premises to accommodate major international exhibitions, I am anxious to ensure the continual upgrading and improvement of our arts infrastructure so that we can attract more major exhibitions of international significance.
In this regard, the new Operational Programme for Tourism, which is currently with the European Commission and should be finalised shortly, will outline the broad plans which I have to upgrade and improve this infrastructure.
International Art Exhibitions in Ireland, 1994
Works on paper by Joseph Beuys (Germany), Yves Klein (Belgium), Jasper Johns (USA), Barnett Newman (USA), Cy Twombly (Italy).
Paintings by Chung Eun-Mo (Korea)
Sculpture by Antony Gormley (Britain)
Drawings by Andre Masson (France)
Sculpture by Juan Munoz (Spain)
Photographs by Cindy Sherman (USA)
Paintings by Juliao Sarmento (Portugal)
Group show of 20 artists from Germany, Japan, France, USA, Mexico, Britain and Belgium, including works by Picasso.
(Carlow-Kilkenny): To the Minister's knowledge, has there been any cancellation of important visitations due to lack of facilities?
I am not in a position to answer that question. If the Deputy gives me details of what he has in mind I will have the matter investigated. We have been well served by international exhibitions. I acknowledge that facilities are inadequate in some respects and in the context of Structural Funds expenditure I will see how I can upgrade facilities to ensure we meet the requirements of significant international exhibitions. As will be seen from the list circulated with my reply, a number of significant international exhibitions are being held here this year and a number were held in the past, but there is still work to be done in attracting major exhibitions. This will require funding and I intend to put forward proposals under the operational programme for Structural Funds for that purpose.
Has the Cultural Relations Committee of the Department of Foreign Affairs a role in initiating touring exhibitions and, if so, is it sufficiently resourced to do so? To be candid, this is an area about which I know little, I am merely looking for information. As we speak, a group exhibition of Polish artists is being unveiled in the Crawford Gallery in Cork. That is due entirely to the initiative of one woman living in the area who saw the opportunity and organised an exchange of paintings between artists in Ireland and artists in Poland. That kind of exchange is beginning to take place and we should take encouragement from it.
We must compliment all those involved in this area. When time allows in preparing initiatives in this regard, I hope to address the indemnification issue to deal with arrangements for exhibitions coming from abroad. What is done by way of voluntary effort is of great value and credit is due to the people involved.
To answer the question on the Cultural Relations Committee, that body is the responsibility of my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs. It is a very important committee which enables the movement of people from and to this country. I agree with the Deputy it is a committee that deserves good funding as it is a very fine ambassador for this country.
