Even the champagne seemed to stop mid-flow when the breath-taking acrobatics of two trapeze artists began. Guests attending the 12th Allianz Business2Arts Awards were spell-bound by the Tumble Circus duo as they slipped and tumbled through each other's legs. It marked the beginning of a gala banquet evening to celebrate the best business and arts collaborations of 2002.
Swedish acrobat Tina Segner and Dubliner Ken Fanning swung - without a net - upside down on two ropes high over the cobblestones of the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. Their gripping seven-minute set seemed to capture the excitement and nerve of the successful business/arts collaborators.
"We are astounded by the quality, depth and breath of arts sponsorships entered into by Irish companies," said Brendan Murphy, chief executive of Allianz Ireland.
The President, Mrs McAleese, presented the nine awards, which were designed by silversmith Séamus Gill. Brigid Roden, chief executive of Business2Arts, spread the message that "you can bring the arts into the office or workplace for very little money, that's what I'm trying to encourage".
Among the winners was a group from outside Tullamore, Co Offaly who won the best business/arts collaboration for the first time. The Bord na Móna and Lough Boora Sculpture Symposium took place last September over three weeks. The pieces of sculpture which are now permanently on view in the area, were created by six artists, said Ruairí Ó Cuív, arts consultant, who introduced Tom Egan, of Bord na Móna, and artist Kevin O'Dwyer as the project's main instigators.
Another award went to the best business/arts collaboration by a small business. It was presented to a market research company, Behaviour and Attitudes and their artistic partner, The Graphic Studio. "We've been developing a limited run of original prints for our clients as annual Christmas presents for the past 14 years," explained Graham Wilkinson, of Behaviour and Attittudes. Designer Steve Averill, who designed most of U2's albums, was commissioned to design the packaging for the gift and Killian O'Donnell, to write the copy. The Graphic Studio, which produced the prints, was represented by its manager James McCreary.
This year the judges, said Roden, were asked to look for "collaboration . . . for companies who included their staff and/or the local community in the sponsorship, for companies who went that one step further".