Culture Ireland Grants

Culture Ireland promotes Irish arts worldwide. We create and support opportunities for Irish

artists and companies to present and promote their work at strategic international festivals and

venues.

Purpose of Awards

Culture Ireland offers support to Irish professional artists, arts organisations and international

presenters to present work by Irish artists at significant international venues and festivals.

In supporting an event, Culture Ireland offers grant funding towards costs which relate directly

to the international presentation of the event, i.e. travel and travel related costs such as

transport, accommodation and subsistence.

Culture Ireland considers applications for all forms of the arts as defined in the Arts Act 2003:

“arts means any creative or interpretative expression (whether traditional or contemporary) in

whatever form, and includes, in particular, visual arts, theatre, literature, music, dance, opera,

film, circus and architecture, and includes any medium when used for those purposes”.

Basic Eligibility Requirements:

 Application must be in respect of an Irish professional artist/s or arts organisation

 Application must be in respect of an art form defined under the Arts Act 2003

 Only international events are supported (i.e., outside the island of Ireland)

 The event must be accessible to an open public audience and fees must be payable to

the artist/s or arts organisation

 Funding support is limited to travel and travel related costs

 Grants are only payable to the person/organisation named on the initial application

 Applications deemed eligible are assessed in line with the following criteria:

 Artistic quality of work and track record of artist/s or arts organisation

 Financial and operational viability of the event (including fees and level of support from

presenter/venue/other partners)

 Profile of international venue/festival

 Proven capacity of applicant, artist/s or arts organisation to present work internationally

 Wider promotional and media impact

What does Culture Ireland mean by artistic quality? Artistic quality can be defined as work that

is ambitious, excellent and original, connects to audiences and has been presented nationally to

critical acclaim. It should be noted that the assessment of the artistic quality of the proposed

work is made using knowledge, experience and specialist advice.

Examples of eligible applications include:

 Theatre, circus and dance performances by professional companies

 Film-makers presenting films at key international film festivals

 Performances by professional or professionally-led musicians and ensembles

 Visual artists/galleries exhibiting at internationally recognised art fairs/galleries

 Readings by writers/poets in English or Irish or otherwise at international literary

festivals

Please note that because of the competitive nature and context of each grant round, limited

funding and a large number of applicants, eligibility and compliance with criteria for assessment

alone does not guarantee that you will receive grant funding.

Examples of ineligible applications include:

 Events which have already taken place

 Research, opportunities, study or professional training

 Production Costs

 Residencies

 Bursaries

 Workshops/Conferences

 Amateur events

 Work by non-professional artists

 Events of a competitive nature.

How to Apply

Deadline: 1 August 2021

Application forms and further information can be accessed on the Culture Ireland website