» ARTS & CULTURE ‘Being able to present a 360 degree of contemporary Irish creativity, culture and innovation, I think is more powerful than any snapshot of an individual area’ The creative connection A year-long programme of Irish cultural events in the United States may well have a lasting and wide-ranging impact on connections between the two countries. Grainne Rothery spoke to Culture <strong>Ireland</strong>’s chief executive, EUGENE DOWNES Eugene Downes 66 INNOVATION IRELAND REVIEW Issue 2 Spring/Summer 2011
ARTS & CULTURE » IF AMERICA WAS IN ANY DOUBT THAT IRELAND’S CREATIVITY AND INNOVATION IS AT THE VERY TOP OF ITS GAME, an ambitious year-long cultural initiative that is bringing over 300 Irish theatre, literature, dance, music, film and visual arts events, and a cast of 1,000 artists and ensembles to more than 40 US states during 2011, should brush those reservations firmly aside. The overt aim of the Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong> project may be to showcase the country’s creativity from an artistic perspective, but the Irish Government makes no bones about the fact the initiative is also about creating and renewing connections with this vital market, both for the arts and for Irish business, and about changing perceptions about Irish innovation in all areas of endeavour. Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong> is a Government-supported project that is being co-ordinated by Culture <strong>Ireland</strong>, the six-year old organisation dedicated to promoting Irish arts internationally. According to Eugene Downes, chief executive of Culture <strong>Ireland</strong>, the US market has been a critical area of focus for his organisation from the outset. “It’s been one where Irish artists have met with great success, but also vast tracts of the country would have been relatively untouched, certainly by more contemporary Irish arts of different kinds,” he says. “Even in the great cultural centres, there would in many years be surprisingly little contemporary Irish work in leading venues. We felt there was a real challenge there to up our game collectively and to reopen connections with major institutions. “We felt there would be value in choosing a moment to try to get something that would have real critical mass and that would be able, as a special separately branded platform, to communicate a particular set of messages.” This idea coincided with a Government review process which took place in late 2008/early 2009 and examined the whole <strong>Ireland</strong> US relationship. “The review was launched in March 2009 and had a major chapter on culture: the role of culture and the power that arts and culture have in renewing that Irish-American relationship and how that can reenergise other parts of the relationship as well,” he continues. A recommendation to organise a high-profile cultural initiative in 2011 was approved by Government. “That gave us the starting gun officially to be able to move ahead and plan with a definite timeframe,” says Downes. “Since 2009, we’ve been steadily putting the plan together. It is a very ambitious undertaking and the largest promotion of Irish arts ever abroad.” Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong> has received a one-off investment of €4m. In addition, up to €1m of Culture <strong>Ireland</strong>’s regular core budget of €4m will be spent on Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong>-related programmes as part of its normal US spend. The Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong> programme covers a full spectrum across the art forms. “To exclude any art form would be to weaken the thrust of the whole effort. Being able to present a 360 degree of contemporary Irish creativity, culture and innovation, I think is more powerful than any snapshot of an individual area.” Details of the programme were announced in January by <strong>Ireland</strong>’s newly appointed Cultural Ambassador Gabriel Byrne. The artists involved range from the established – Colm McCann, Anne Enright, the Abbey Theatre, Paddy Moloney and The Chieftains, Colm Tóbín and Roddy Doyle are just a handful of the big names involved – to more emerging talents. One of the programme’s aspirations has been to highlight the fact that <strong>Ireland</strong>'s tradition of creativity and innovation in the arts continues. “Joyce and Beckett were absolutely at the cutting edge of redefining their art form,” explains Downes. “As innovators, one couldn’t possibly find better symbols of <strong>Ireland</strong>’s cutting edge, imaginative power in whatever sector. Equally, it’s fantastic to be able to introduce to America, through Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong>, younger Irish artists, musicians and writers.” The geographical scope of the project extends beyond the centres where Irish art and indeed people have traditional connections. “We wanted to try to reach into states that would have seen very little work, to try to pioneer new trails that Irish artists would then be able to build on and that we’d be able to build on with them and that other agencies can connect into.” CONVERGENCE In certain events, Culture <strong>Ireland</strong> is working with other agencies to explore the convergence of art, design and technology. A good example is the South by Southwest festival which takes place each March in Austin, Texas. “We’ve worked for a number of years with the music part of South by Southwest. This year for the first time the Irish Film Board came in to promote Irish film at the film strand of the event and Enterprise <strong>Ireland</strong> came on board to promote Irish interactive technologies and digital technology in digital media in the interactive part. “South by Southwest is a platform that gives us a glimpse of the power that bringing art, digital media and cultural content together with the technological platforms can distribute, and how interactive technology, particularly engaging with cultural content, is opening up all kinds of routes that we wouldn’t have imagined. “We’re clearly a global leader in the field of live music, and equally obviously a leader in the field of ICT. So there’s an obvious opportunity there to match that cultural content with the technology platforms.” According to Downes, a number of other events in the autumn part of Imagine <strong>Ireland</strong> will further showcase and explore the value and the benefit of the whole art, cultural content, digital media and technology convergence. Issue 2 Spring/Summer 2011 INNOVATION IRELAND REVIEW 67
Change language