The Arts Council has been granted a 16 per cent increase in its funding for next year, but applications for funding will be nearly double the €61 million available.
The council announced details of its funding allocation today, but it has yet to publish the full list of successful applicants.
Some €61 million in funding has been allocated to the body for 2005. The council said the 16 per cent increase will be passed on directly to artists and arts organisations. The largest increases were for the film and traditional arts sectors, which received increases of 22 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.
Ms Olive Braiden, chair of the council, welcomed the increase in the body's allocation from the Government, however.
"The council has been committed to passing increased funding on to artists and arts organisations and we are happy to report that funding to arts organisations has increased by 16 per cent across the Council's four main programme areas: production companies, resource and service organisations, arts venues and festivals and events," she said.
Ms Braiden revealed that the Arts Council received 410 applications from arts organisations throughout the State.
A total of 77 were from applicants who had never previously applied for funding from the council, which reflected the vibrancy of the sector, Ms Braiden added. Applications for support will be almost double what is available.
Some 297 organisations have been approved for funding - 39 more than last year. Of these, 18 are first-time applicants.
The successful applicants will be notified by the council later this week and the list will then be published on the Arts Council's website.
Funding programmes include artists' awards, bursaries and schemes, a minor capital scheme and a small festivals scheme.
Mr John O'Kane, Arts Programme Director of the Council, said the body had given priority in its 2005 allocations to addressing specific areas of under-funding of arts organisations and by extending the range of work the Council supports.