Sir, – In relation to the letter (February 5th) about Waterford's Greyfriars Municipal Gallery, Waterford City & County Council is in the process of developing two significant enhancements to the cultural and heritage attractions in the city. We are developing a new City Gallery which will be 597 sq m, nearly double the size of the existing gallery in Greyfriars. This will allow for a permanent exhibition of Waterford's municipal collection and will facilitate a much wider range of exhibitions, performances and artistic activities to take place. It is also an important first step in the development of the Cultural Quarter in Waterford. Alongside the development of the City Gallery, Waterford City and Council is also developing a Museum of Time which will have a collection of over 100 Irish clocks and watches of exceptional quality dating from 1690s to the 1890s and will be a further enhancement to the Museum of Treasures, which last year opened a new virtual reality Viking experience.
In order to facilitate the development of these two significant projects, the Municipal Gallery will have to close from the end of March until early July, to allow for the fitting-out for the new museum and new gallery. This is a small interruption to the excellent service provided by our arts team in the Greyfriars Gallery, and is not a retrograde and damaging step that would send a negative message to the rest of the country regarding Waterford City and County Council’s commitment to the arts, as suggested by some. – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL QUINN,
Director of Corporate
and Cultural Services,
Waterford City
and County Council,
City Hall,
The Mall, Waterford.