Arts Council meeting branded a 'box-ticking exercise'

 The meeting took place with Arts Council director Maureen Kennelly after 141 artists, the majority of approximately 160 applicants for the Next Generation Award, were incorrectly told they had won. File Picture: Tristan Hutchinson

A meeting held by the Arts Council of Ireland with over 140 artists who were incorrectly told they had won a “life-changing” award has been labelled as a “box ticking” exercise.

Hopes of compensation for the “shocking” error were also dashed during the two-hour online meeting.

The meeting took place with Arts Council director Maureen Kennelly after 141 artists, the majority of approximately 160 applicants for the “highly competitive” and “life-changing” Next Generation Award, were incorrectly told they had won.

A follow-up email sent shortly after clarified that the initial message had been issued in error and rescinded the award worth €25,000, leaving dozens of artists, many of whom had contacted friends and family informing them of their success, in a state of shock and disappointment.

Several of those impacted by the error met earlier this week, with some proposing to ask for compensation based on legitimate expectation.

However, the artists were told by the council “very clearly” that compensation was not possible.

One artist who attended the meeting said although “there has not been a satisfactory conclusion”, they are hopeful that the Arts Council will take on board some of the recommendations the artists put forward. They added:

One of the main recommendations was compensation or remuneration, and we were told very clearly they are not in a position to do that.

One issue that was brought up by multiple artists during the meeting was that a member of staff within the Arts Council “disrespectfully” retweeted a tweet referencing the error in which someone said: “No one died”.

The staff member deleted the post soon after, with council staff telling those in attendance that they were “embarrassed” and that it should not have happened.

On the issue of the retweet, a spokesperson said the mistake was “regrettable” and in no way represents the views of the council.

“Our mission is to support the development of the arts in Ireland, we work with artists every day of the week, and we really care,” they said.

Another artist who attended said the meeting seemed to be nothing more than a “box-ticking exercise,” in which the Council sought to “save face”, although noted that staff representatives did seem “genuinely apologetic”. Following the meeting, Ms Kennelly said: 

"We are very grateful to artists for taking the time to meet us this afternoon and also to assist us with the best format in which to hold the discussion.

“It was an opportunity for us to apologise unreservedly to those artists who were impacted. Hearing more about their experiences today will help us to better support them.”