What's in a library ticket? Closer inspection of that dog-eared scrap of cardboard reveals it to be the most valuable item in your back pocket: a guarantee of a boredom-free life. It's a passport to the world of the imagination; to life-long absorption, diversion, stimulation; to independence of thought, to empowerment, even . . . As you can see, it's a subject that pushes some people into passionate, rhetorical mode and late last year 130 library enthusiasts, professionals and representatives of cultural bodies gathered in Dublin to swap notes at a one-day conference titled "Access All Areas: Strategic Alliances Between Arts and Libraries". It was opened by the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Noel Dempsey, and chaired by Prof Declan Kiberd of UCD.
Why the passion? Because, at a time when higher educational qualifications are acquired at great expense, and many cultural activities remain out of reach for those on low incomes or social welfare, the public library system tenaciously retains its genuinely egalitarian ethos. While bookshops seem to be becoming more like libraries, encouraging browsing with their soft chairs, soothing music and coffee areas, the ultimate goal is, of course, the acquisition and consumption of a product. Libraries, in contrast, encourage the active use of information and participation in life-long, self-motivated learning that may be as lateral, or idiosyncratic as anyone desires. The doors of public libraries are made to be pushed open but anyone who hasn't visited their local branch recently will be surprised at the changes. Librarians are preparing themselves to meet the demands of continuing adult education, distance learning, adult literacy, the Internet and other IT resources, as well as increased arts activity. Of course, there's still a long way to go.
The growing partnership between the Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaion and the Library Council/ An Chomhairle Leabharlanna, as proposed by The Arts Plan 1995-97, has resulted in the establishment of the Public Library And The Arts Committee to develop and advise on policy to strengthen links between these two areas - "natural allies", as Noel Dempsey described them. The committee has commissioned surveys on library professionals' attitudes to its proposals. Eighty-eight per cent of librarians surveyed believe that public libraries should be centres of community arts and should foster local creativity. At present, libraries mount fine art, crafts and photographic exhibitions, as well as holding writing workshops, lectures and literary readings, but lack of space for more ambitious performance projects was cited as a major problem. Encouraging participation by children and teenagers is an important goal and, as always, questions about future sources of funding reverberated through the day's workshops and discussions.
In his opening address, Noel Dempsey emphasised the importance of rooting cultural life in local communities. "The public library is one bulwark against the development of a `blandscape' of anonymous and rootless culture. It is profoundly local. With over 300 branches, it has the greatest presence throughout the country of any public service."
Further information on the Public Library And The Arts Committee from The Library Council, 53-54 Upper Mount St, Dublin 2. Tel: (01) 676 1167/1963.
