A celebratory event to mark the 25th anniversary of Roscommon Arts Centre was held at the facility recently. Speakers were County Arts Officer Rhona McGrath and artist Tom Mescal, the latter the lead artist on the production of a ‘photo essay’ booklet entitled The Leaping Horse, produced to mark the anniversary.
Ms McGrath said what was a big undertaking had actually begun 30 years ago, when an initial application for funding was submitted by local group, Working Artists Roscommon.
“It’s great to see Noel Molloy (of Working Artists Roscommon) and others here today who were involved from the very start. They put in the first application for funding to the Department of Arts” Rhona added, noting that former President of Ireland Michael D Higgins was the minister at the time.
The arts officer said those involved quickly realised that this was a big project. “They decided to approach the county council at the time. The arts officer at that stage was Emer Leavy. In fairness, the council took the project on and it was a huge undertaking. In fact, it is a big project for the council to look after every year.
“It takes a big effort to fund and run an arts centre, and there are very few local authorities in the country that actually do that. Roscommon is one of the few.”
Rhona said that the arts centre is now very much part and parcel of the local community.
“This centre is for the community, and it is for local artists too, and the addition of the top-class gallery that was built in 2019 makes it an even more attractive facility. There is always development, and there has to be to keep in step with the way things are going in society.”
Rhona said the plan is to maintain the high standards and run the centre as successfully as it has been over the years. She added that “the booklet that we have published today in conjunction with our anniversary, The Leaping Horse, is on that theme.
“There are so many diverse shows happening all the time,” she continued. “For instance, we had a ‘creative mic’ night this week and there were over 20 people performing there.
“We have prioritised community groups here, like the local drama group, and of course the annual drama festival is a huge success. The centre here is home to the Roscommon Youth Theatre, and that’s a great training ground for our young people. We have Cór Comáin (choir) rehearsing here, we have our 50-plus dancers, the 50-plus singers and many other groups who use the centre, so we are looking forward to the next 25 years here at Roscommon Arts Centre,” she concluded.
Tom Mescal, lead artist involved in the publication of the photo essay booklet The Leaping Horse, stressed the need for facilities like Roscommon Arts Centre around the country.
“I live in Charlestown and my first big solo show was here in this building 20 years ago, so I got my start here in Roscommon Arts Centre. The fact is that artists cannot work without facilities like this one.”
Tom said the centre is a link between artists and the local community. “The centre is the intermediary between the artists and the public, and this centre has meant that the arts scene in Roscommon is so vibrant.
“There are great facilities here… for an artist like myself, there is studio space upstairs, and that’s so important. But that studio space can also be used by performers, so it’s a marvellous facility to have. It’s been a great success” he added, expressing the hope that the facility will prosper for a further 25 years – and beyond!
