Sir, – A few years ago I found myself, against my better instincts, greatly encouraged by remarks made by the great and the good at the Farmleigh Forum, organised by the previous government.
We were told how important the arts are in our society and how the arts must play a central role in our recovery. More recently we hear a lot about the value of cultural tourism, particularly in the context of the initiative “The Gathering”.
Well, how foolish was I to believe that such aspirations might translate into positive action.
Last week, when travelling back to Dublin from Galway by train I had a truly revealing experience. On the journey I struck up a conversation with some people from the US who were without question cultural tourists. Now even though this was their first trip to Ireland, they came well informed. I listened with interest as they outlined their various encounters with Irish cultural life. They first travelled to Sandycove to visit the Martello Tower, made famous by James Joyce, only to discover that it was closed. After this disappointment, they returned to Dublin and went to Synge Street to see the home of George Bernard Shaw to discover that it too was closed.
They then decided to change tack and check out the visual arts scene.
Sadly, no luck there! They found that most of the National Gallery was closed and that several rooms in the Hugh Lane Gallery were also closed due to staff shortages. Luckily they didn’t venture out to Kilmainham because there they would have discovered that the Irish Museum of Modern Art is also closed.
After Dublin they travelled west to find that the Nora Barnacle Museum in Galway was not open to the public and that the tower in Sligo, once occupied by WB Yeats, was closed due to flood damage.
So, having listened to this disappointing litany, the only emotion I can admit to in relation to our present cultural infrastructure is one of shame. – Yours, etc,