1,000 signatures reached
To: Michael Martin, Simon Harris, Dublin City Council, An Post, Fianna Fail, Fine Gael
The Irish Academy of Fine Arts, at the GPO
IRISH ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS
ACADAMH MÍNEALAÍNE NA hEIREANN
This campaign seeks to establish an Academy of Fine Arts in the GPO on O’Connell Street in Dublin.
This proposal is not only for the creation of a new educational institution, one that will revolutionise art education in Ireland, but also to catalyse the renewal of O’Connell Street—transforming it from a symbol of neglect into a distinguished civic space: a central avenue worthy of the Hibernian Metropolis, the capital of the Gaelic world, that can be recognised internationally among the great boulevards of the world.
The establishment of an Academy of Fine Arts will give to Ireland three profound and tangible benefits of enduring value:
1. It will restore life, colour and joy to O’Connell Street, transforming it into a vibrant centre of learning, culture, and civic pride. In doing so, it will act as a catalyst for the renewal of that part north inner city—an area that has suffered years of neglect.
2. It will redefine art education in Ireland, offering an alternative model rooted in fundamental transferrable skills, the principles of beauty, and the cultivation original thought. This skills-led approach will provide a more comprehensive and balanced education than that currently available in our existing fine art colleges.
3. It will give Ireland an institution that will stand as a symbol of our national pride and our national identity, enabling Ireland to take its rightful place among the great nations of Europe, many of whom have had Academies of Fine Arts for hundreds of years.
Why do we need an Academy of Fine Arts?
In Ireland, the standard of Fine Art education often falls short, failing both individual students, and society at large. Fundamental skills are neglected, as are the principles of beauty, and graduates often emerge from their studies with a distorted sense of what art actually is. Over the last three generations, fine art education has been undermined by a narrow contemporary art ethos, the result is a system that fails to nurture skill, insight or the pursuit of beauty. It is time for a new model, an Academy of Fine Arts would provide exactly that.
An Academy of Fine Arts in the GPO would offer third level training in drawing, painting, sculpture and architecture. Its curriculum would be grounded in a clear philosophical foundation, defining what art is and what it takes to train an artist.
The Academy will offer training that draws inspiration from Europe’s finest institutions, while honouring our indigenous culture. It will honour the masters of the past while embracing new ideas and technologies, preparing students to contribute meaningfully to the future of art. The Academy will train the hand, the mind and the eye with equal emphasis and rigour. It will produce graduates that are skilled, insightful, enlightened, and schooled in the principles of beauty. They will have a clear conception of what an artist is, the role of the artist in society, and what they must aspire to in order to achieve greatness in their work.
An Academy could be established with a modest initial investment, one that would repay itself many times over, for generations to come. It would bring vitality and colour to O'Connell Street, becoming a uniquely Irish institution, enriching and strengthening our culture for everyone who lives in Ireland.
Ireland has often stood apart from the great artistic movements enjoyed by the rest of Europe down through the centuries. It has left us without a strong tradition of visual culture. Yet today, we have both the talent and the resources to spark a renaissance of our own.
Instead, we have been drifting backwards, undervaluing the importance of beauty, artistry and insightful design in our art and public places. Now is the time to move forward again. Now is the time to restore the primacy of skill and craftsmanship, to once again pursue beauty with rigor and imagination, and to honour original thought and the value of our shared art-historical heritage.
Instead, we have been drifting backwards, undervaluing the importance of beauty, artistry and insightful design in our art and public places. Now is the time to move forward again. Now is the time to restore the primacy of skill and craftsmanship, to once again pursue beauty with rigor and imagination, and to honour original thought and the value of our shared art-historical heritage.
The establishment of an Academy would signal the dawn of a distinctly Irish renaissance, a bold cultural awakening and an enlightenment of our own making, standing as a beacon for a flourishing of art and thought for generations to come.
Why is this important?
Why the GPO?
The GPO offers a rare and remarkable opportunity. Many of the great academies of Europe, such as the Royal Academy in London, the Repin Academy in St. Petersburg, the Ecole de beaux Arts in Paris, and the Royal Academy in Stockholm, are landmark institutions in landmark buildings, of which those cities are rightfully proud. Ireland has a unique opportunity to create something similar: an institution worthy of our capital city, the capital of the Gaelic world, that will stand as a rallying point for our national pride and national identity.
At a time when narrow, divisive forms of nationalism are on the rise, the Academy would offer a different vision: a symbol of shared cultural achievement and unifying values, honouring Ireland’s past but open to the world, and a source of pride we can all celebrate together.
Honouring the GPO’s History
The GPO is more than a landmark, it is the symbolic heart of the nation. It was the focus of Ireland’s struggle for freedom in 1916, and it is here that our modern nation was, in many ways, born. To establish an Academy of Fine Arts within the GPO would be to honour that legacy, continuing the spirit of what was called the Poets’ Rebellion. Many of the leaders of the Rising were writers, thinkers, and artists; their vision of independence was inseparable from a vision of cultural revival.
In recent years, various proposals have been made for the GPO’s future: as a museum, as a place for shops and offices, even as a Garda station. Yet none speaks as powerfully to the ideals of 1916 as the creation of an Academy: a living institution that would nurture creativity, enrich the people of Ireland, and ensure the GPO remains a place of renewal and not only of our nation, but of our spirit.
This proposal is not bound to any political party or ideology. Its purpose is larger: to give Ireland an institution that embodies the highest values of our history, while serving generations to come.
This proposal is not bound to any political party or ideology. Its purpose is larger: to give Ireland an institution that embodies the highest values of our history, while serving generations to come.
Reviving the North Inner City
O’Connell Street, the principal street of our capital, should be a place about which Irish people can be proud— a vibrant, beautiful thoroughfare that reflects Ireland’s spirit. Yet today it feels diminished, its grandeur obscured by neglect and visual clutter, and much of the north inner city around it has become uninviting.
The Academy of Fine Arts would help change this. By bringing life, learning, and creativity back into the heart of the city, it would restore O’Connell Street as a cultural landmark — a place where people go, not simply to pass through, but to gather, to experience art, beauty, and community. The Academy would act as a catalyst for renewal, helping to regenerate the north inner city and transform Dublin’s main street into a space worthy of its national importance.
Art for humanity?
All human beings share three universal values: Goodness, Truth and Beauty.
Our shared sense of Goodness (or Morality) prompts us to care for and nurture each other, and cultivate communities. Our shared sense of Truth prompts us to be just, allows societies to function, and academic and technological progress to happen. And our sense of Beauty prompts us to appreciate and care for the physical world that we live in. These values are common to all mankind and comprise the core of our shared humanity. They are innate in all of us, but they are corruptible, and must be cultivated and defended. When any of these values become undermined, our humanity becomes undermined, and societies can begin to act in ways that are uncaring, regressive, and destructive. There are many examples of this from history, and sadly, from the present day.
It is as important to a harmonious, just and humane society that it has highly trained artists as it is that it has highly trained doctors or soldiers.
In Ireland, we have done much to protect and advance Goodness and Truth through our social and academic institutions. But beauty has too often been neglected. The erosion of artistry, craftsmanship, and the abandonment of the pursuit of beauty in art education, over successive generations, has left its mark on our culture and our environment. The establishment of an Academy of Fine Arts will not undo this damage overnight, but it can begin to restore the balance, helping Ireland to move forward again with a renewed commitment to Beauty, alongside Goodness and Truth, as the foundation of an enlightened and flourishing society.