Arts Council of Wales welcomes the Minister's announcement today (Tuesday 14 October) about the future display of visual art in Wales.
Nick Capaldi, Chief Executive of Arts Council of Wales, said:
"Wales deserves national institutions for the visual arts, both in terms of a national art gallery, and in the creation of a new national centre for contemporary art. These projects present significant funding challenges that will take time to achieve, but they form part of our long-term vision for the arts.
"We are also delighted that the Welsh Assembly Government will be making available an additional £700,000 to enhance the visual art facilities at Oriel Mostyn in Llandudno, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, and Chapter in Cardiff."
The Minister's announcement refers to the publication today of the report by consultants ABL on The Future Display of Visual Art in Wales. The report highlights the need for a National Gallery, which would offer extended display and ancillary space in an expanded and developed Cathays Park site at National Museum Cardiff; and a parallel, but separate, new National Centre for Contemporary Art, which would show contemporary art from Wales, art of international stature from elsewhere, and temporary exhibition work. The ambition would be to create a building of comparable quality to similar facilities elsewhere in Europe.
At present, however, the Arts Council remains focused on completing the existing capital refurbishment and new build programme which, since 2001, has seen some £24.5m of investment in spaces dedicated to exhibiting art in Wales. Projects completed include Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Oriel Davies (Newtown), Ruthin Craft Gallery and Oriel Ynys Môn. Others underway are the significant redevelopment of Oriel Mostyn in Llandudno, Chapter in Cardiff, and what promises to be a beautiful refurbishment and extension of the Glynn Vivian Art Gallery as it approaches its 100th Birthday.
The additional £700,000 investment from the Welsh Assembly Government will significantly enhance the building projects at Oriel Mostyn, Aberystwyth Arts Centre (the exciting artist studio and work spaces designed by Thomas Heatherwick) and the Gallery element of the re-development of Chapter,one of Europe's focal points for creative endeavour.
Arts Council of Wales recognises that the ABL study has gone as far as it can to look at the realities and challenges of creating such new and national facilities in Wales. Large scale capital investment from Government, Lottery, and other sources remains spoken for or constrained in the immediate future. A new development of this scale will therefore require new partnerships and new investment if it is to be taken forward to a successful conclusion.
Nick Capaldi concluded:
"The consultants' report helpfully puts down markers to guide the way ahead, and Arts Council of Wales will seek to keep the dialogue open and alive to future possibilities. Looking at how these ambitions can be achieved will be our next task. For the time being, however, we will continue to work on building capacity for the artists, craftspeople, creatives and curators who are working in Wales's contemporary visual culture and growing and involving audiences for this work."