Plans are at an advanced stage to provide Carlow with a contemporary visual arts centre capable of winning international recognition for the county.
The ambition behind the project will be viewed by many as "startling", according to British experts who carried out a concept assessment for Carlow County Council.
They concluded, however, that the plan was realisable and, if implemented, would have a "transforming impact" on Carlow's image.
A major visual arts centre would also bring spin-off benefits to all aspects of life in the county, they argued.
It is intended to locate the £7.5 million unit in the grounds of Carlow College. The centre's main gallery would be the biggest single space for the visual arts in Ireland, while additional galleries, artists' studios and workshops, art education workshops and a restaurant-bar are also planned.
The council has applied for £4 million in funding from the Access programme administered by the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands.
A working group of local business people has been established with a view to raising a private-sector contribution.
Mr Jim Kearney, the Carlow county secretary, says once the extent of available Access funding is made known, both Carlow local authorities - the county and urban district councils - will be asked to approve further financial support. The project would then proceed immediately.
The potential benefits of the plan are spelt out in the concept assessment carried out last year by a three-man team: Mr Mike Collier, fine art programme leader at Newcastle College; Mr Chris Bailey, head of the school of humanities at the University of Northumbria; and Mr Peter Stark, director of the centre for cultural policy research at the same university. In their report to the county manager, Mr Tom Dowling, the three said Carlow's ambition to establish itself as a nationally acknowledged centre for the arts could be achieved within three to four years.
International recognition could be secured at the same time and consolidated during the following three to four years.
The British team acknowledged the proposal to create a visual arts centre in Carlow had been developed over nearly two decades by a group of local enthusiasts, many of them involved in the annual Eigse festival, with the support of national artists, architects and critics.
The benefits of such a centre would be wide ranging, the report argues. Its presence would contribute "directly, indirectly and immediately" to Carlow's ambition to be acknowledged as one of the best places in Ireland in which to live.
A quality arts centre would help entice families, firms, students and visitors to the county, and would have a "transforming impact" on its image.
