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Ireland's oldest arts charity
NEWS AND EVENTS Our New President
At our Annual General Meeting Dr John Turpin was elected as President of the Friends of the National Collections of Ireland. Dr Turpin attended the Courtauld Institute of Art, London, was appointed professor of the history of art at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, in 1975 and was director of the college from 1989 to 1994. He has published extensively on the history of Irish art and recently wrote the two volume History of the Royal Hibernian Academy. He has served a previous term as president of the FNCI. His predecessor, the distinguished painter Dr Tom Ryan, who sadly has died, was a former president of the Royal Hibernian Academy and was the first professional artist to have been president of the FNCI since Dermod O'Brien in the 1940s. Ms June Lattimore was re-elected as Honorary Secretary and Dr Michael Burns was re-elected as Honorary Treasurer. For a full list of the members of Council, click on ABOUT. A Generous Bequest
The Friends of the National Collections of Ireland have received a generous bequest under the will of our former president, the late Dr John Maiben Gilmartin. It is very much appreciated, and will greatly assist us in our work, which has too often been frustrated through lack of funds. John joined the Friends while still a student, was an active and erudite member of Council for many years and was our president on two occasions, most recently from 2016 to 2018. It was entirely in character that his will should reflect his public spirit and philanthropy, with thoughtfully chosen gifts of paintings, sculpture and interesting objects left by him to a range of national and regional cultural institutions in Dublin, Sligo, Waterford and elsewhere. His contribution to the work of the Friends deserves to be commemorated, and Council is considering how best to do this. The Work Goes On
Although the lengthy Covid-19 pandemic restrictions curtailed the FNCI's normal programme of visits and social events for its members, we did not allow it to stop us from continuing to acquire works to donate to national and regional cultural institutions. For details of what we have been doing, please click on DONATIONS. We hope that circumstances will allow us to resume our social activities in the autumn. In the meantime we are extremely grateful to loyal members who have continued to pay the annual subscription. Give a friend a Gift of FNCI Membership
Brighten somebody’s life throughout the year with a subscription to the Friends of the National Collections of Ireland (FNCI). Individual: = €40 Student: = €20 Family: = €60 Life Membership: = €500 Corporate Membership: = €600 Your much-appreciated gift will provide an opportunity to meet our members and to join in some truly memorable events during the year ahead. Just send a cheque or debit card details to: The Honorary Treasurer, FNCI, P.O. Box 11481, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 giving us the name and address of the person you want to receive this gift and leave the rest to us. |