Kilkenny arts groups to draw down over €1m in funding

More than €1 million has been set aside this year for Kilkenny art events and projects by the Arts Council of Ireland.

Five organisations in Kilkenny are to benefit from a total of €1,053,837 in grants as part of the Art Council’s Strategic Funding for the coming year.

The  Government has made an increased grant of €130 million to the Arts Council this year in a welcome boost for the sector as the country prepares to emerge from the pandemic.

Arts Council Director Maureen Kennelly welcomed the funding, saying the arts would seek to “lead and inspire Irish society as we recover from the pandemic”.

Ms Kennelly said: “Increased public investment is enabling us to support ambitious plans throughout the country and to ensure that the core infrastructure of the arts landscape survives the most challenging period ever faced.”

Ms Kennelly acknowledged the sector was suffering disproportionately during the pandemic, but she added: “Ireland’s key organisations are demonstrating impressive levels of imagination and adaptability in their planning and we are confident that these funding decisions will support them to build back better and to reach the widest possible audience.”

The five Kilkenny groups to receive funding are: