Banking on the arts

A number of Leeside art projects are set to benefit from a new €300,000 arts fund announced by Bank of Ireland this week.

Overall the BOI Begin Together Arts Fund will see 36 projects spanning music, theatre, dance, traditional arts and visual arts around the country all receive funding.

The funds will be specifically directed towards projects which have been inspired by the experience of living through Covid-19 or have been adapted in response to the pandemic.

The initial fund of €300,000 is just phase one of the scheme which aims to make a total of €1 million in arts funding available over three years and will open for a second round of applications in April.

Bank of Ireland has established the new fund in partnership with arts and business partnership group Business to Arts.

Catherine Martin, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, said that creating an arts fund like this one of the ways the private sector can be involved in supporting the arts during the pandemic.

She said: “I’d like to congratulate the 36 projects across the island that have been successful with the first phase of grants.”

Oliver Wall, Chief of Staff and Head of Group Corporate Affairs, Bank of Ireland, added: “Art has such an important role to play in helping us to understand, express and reflect on the world, especially at challenging times like these.”