DUBLIN, IRELAND.- The Irish Museum of Modern Art announced a new Members Scheme, which offers greatly increased opportunities for those interested in the visual arts to become directly involved in assisting the Museum’s work. The scheme builds on the previous Friends and Patrons scheme, which has been extended to include several extra categories, including Concession (€30), Individual (€50) and Family (€70).

A wide variety of benefits is available in each of the six categories. These range from invitations to previews and substantial discounts on IMMA limited editions and catalogues for Individuals to additional benefits, such as post-preview suppers and a listing in the Museum’s catalogues, for Supporters. All Members will also be invited to IMMA’s very popular Summer Party and will have use of the new, elegantly-furnished Members Room, just off the main entrance hall.

The Museum has also published its Members Calendar of Events for 2006, featuring champagne breakfasts, a trip to an international art fair in Turin, children’s workshops and other special events.

Commenting on the new scheme, the Museum’s Head of Development, Audrey Brennan, said, “IMMA is pleased to announce this new, more accessible Members Scheme. We value the support of our Members and encourage them to take full advantage of the benefits of membership. The financial support provided by the Members’ annual subscriptions assists us greatly in developing our activities and in bringing the visual arts to increasingly diverse audiences through our exciting exhibitions programme and our outstanding education and community programmes. We are aware that there are a lot of people who visit the Museum on a very regular basis, and we hope that some of them will now consider taking their involvement a step further.”

The Museum is presenting a particularly exciting and diverse programme in 2006, the fifteenth anniversary of its foundation. The very popular Howard Hodgkin exhibition continues until 7 May, while the eagerly-awaited Magnum Ireland show, presenting some 150 images taken in Ireland since the 1950s by this world-famous group of photographers, runs until June. Major exhibitions by the distinguished sculptor Barry Flanagan and the internationally-acclaimed installation artist Michael Craig-Martin follow in June and October respectively. The work of a number of other prominent international artists can also be seen, including the Portuguese artist João Penalva, whose practice encompasses painting, installation and performance, the German photographer Candida Höfer and Iran do Espirito Santo, one of Brazil’s most interesting contemporary artists.

Exhibitions drawn from IMMA’s own Collection for the remainder of the year are Irish Art of the Seventies, including works from the recently-acquired PJ Carroll Collection, opening on 10 May; Inner Worlds Outside, bringing together works by leading Modernists with that of less-well-known Outsider artists in July, and the first showing in Ireland of an important film work by James Coleman, widely recognised as one of the most outstanding artists working in new media today, in August.

In addition, to celebrate the ninetieth year of the distinguished Irish artist Louis le Brocquy a display of six major works from the artist’s own collection will be shown from May to December.