In his recent history of the relationship between taoisigh and the arts since the foundation of the State, the current Arts Council chairman Kevin Rafter reminds us of the political indifference to culture that forms most of that history. Arts policy was never high on the agenda – with the exception of the State’s repressive censorship laws. Through several decades underfunding was a core cause of instability in the sector, leading to dire hardship for many writers and artists.
The arts survived, and at times even thrived, in that climate of neglect. In the past few years of the Covid pandemic the sector has again survived but on this occasion the State played an unprecedented role. The triggering effect of the pandemic, and its impact on artists’ livelihoods and careers, resulted in what had been previously been unimaginable: an almost doubling of the Arts Council budget from €75 million before Covid to €130 million for 2021, a level retained for the coming year.
On the back of this sea-change, artists and venues came through the challenges of the lockdowns to re-emerge as a revitalised sector with theatres and arts centres reopening, audiences returning to live performances and festivals as well as many artists now more securely supported. Perhaps the most unexpected outcome of the crisis has been the introduction of the basic income for artists, now up and running but still very much a pilot scheme and “research project”. How that research determines future strategy remains to be seen and requires vigilance. While 8,000 applications were made, the scheme involves only a quarter of that figure, suggesting that the struggling artist is not -–and never will be –a thing of the past.
There is, unfortunately, the danger of taking for granted this new, improved relationship between the State and its artists. Any slowdown in economic growth could bring new funding pressures. Artists are, however, in a far better position to withstand a downturn, but only if the old inclination to see them as an easy target for budgetary cutbacks is resisted. Perhaps the National Campaign for the Arts should hold on to its banners.