Award nomination for art partnership

A mighty partnership of two of Cork’s biggest art advocates has been shortlisted for a national award.

The Crawford Art Gallery and Arup are in the running for the prestigious Business to Art Awards in the Best Mid-Size Sponsorship category for their hugely successful 2018 exhibition, ‘Earth, Wind & Fire: Made in Cork Contemporary’.

The popular exhibition was curated by Anne Boddaert of the Crawford Art Gallery and featured works by ceramic sculptor Nuala O’Donovan, textile artists Mary Palmer and Anne Kiely, and sculptors Joseph Walsh, Alex Pentek and Eoin Turner.

During its time at the gallery the exhibition attracted more than 80,000 visitors.

Arup, one of Ireland’s largest engineering consulting firms, joined forces with Crawford Art Gallery to support the exhibition and associated programmes which sought to combine artistic excellence with technical skills.

Eoghan Lynch, Chairperson of Arup in Ireland, said: “Arts and culture make a vital contribution to the community. Visitors to the gallery were treated to an outstanding display of creativity, encouraging people to think about art and design in a new way.”

Director of the Crawford Art Gallery, Mary McCarthy, said: “We are delighted to have this partnership and we believe that nationally recognised partnerships and collaboration are key elements to Crawford Art Gallery’s strategy.”

Arup has also been nominated for a Judges’ Special Recognition Award for Portfolio of Arts Sponsorship for 'New Now Next' with Irish Architecture Foundation.