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State Art Collection

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 23 September 2020

Wednesday, 23 September 2020

Questions (74)

Eoghan Murphy

Question:

74. Deputy Eoghan Murphy asked the Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht the current policy regarding the archiving of works of art or monuments owned by the State and State institutions or in their trust; the cost of such archiving; if there are set parameters on the way in which and when such pieces may be on public display; and her views on potential damage to the items in view of the conditions in which they are held or stored. [25728/20]

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Written answers

There is an enormous range and diversity of works of art, monuments and other artefacts in the national collections and in or under the care of State bodies. Each institution and agency would have compiled listings and certain information in relation to their holdings and interests over many years. These records would not be in a standardised format and may not be fully digitised for online review. I am aware that several programmes of digitisation have been accelerated by institutions who have sought to enhance their online services in response to restrictions on visitors arising from the COVID control guidelines.

The cost of archive development would relate directly to the quality that would be specified for each item, ranging from a simple listing to include images and ultimately the virtual viewing possibility to rotate and manipulate artefacts online. Given the scale and dispersed nature of the national collections, there is no single project or cost associated with these activities.

Of necessity, only a small proportion of the national collections are available for viewing by the public at any time. Special and temporary exhibitions are arranged from time to time that enable some other pieces to be seen. These arrangements for display are matters in the first instance for the Boards and management of the institutional holders.

The Programme for Government reaffirms the Government's commitment to a €460m programme of capital investment in our National Cultural Institutions (NCIs). Work already completed at the National Library of Ireland has seen an important part of the national collection stored under improved conditions. My Department is engaged on an ongoing basis with the NCIs on the implementation of this programme of works.

Question No. 75 answered with Question No. 72.
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