About

Appointed February 2017

Ruairi O Connor is the General Manager of the River Lee Hotel in Cork city, a Doyle Collection hotel. The Doyle Collection is an Irish, family-owned international luxury hotel group that comprises eight hotels in five vibrant cities around the world. These design-led properties provide luxury havens for modern day travellers, as well as stylish bars and restaurants for local consumers. Ruairi has 20 years’ experience working in hotels across Ireland and France, having spent time in Ashford Castle, Hayfield Manor, Radisson hotels prior to joining the Doyle collection in 2008. Supporting The Arts, Culture and Design is embedded into The Doyle Collection family history. Through his work in various hotels Ruairi has been involved with many arts and tourism projects both nationally and in the Cork Region.

Appointed February 2020

Nick has been a talent agent for over 20 years, working with some of the biggest names in broadcasting, comedy and sport. His first role, as Head of Live Promotions for Avalon in London, saw him responsible for over 2500 live comedy shows per year, including runs at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Aspen Comedy Festival and major West End productions. He has worked extensively with broadcasters across Europe and was an Editorial Director at Harper Collins publishers. He relocated to Cork in 2018 with his wife and young family and, whilst he continues to work for Vivienne Clore Management in London, he is growing his client list across a range of presenters and sports personalities in Ireland.

Appointed August 2020

Fiona Kearney is a curator, academic and writer. She is the founding Director of the Glucksman, an award-winning museum contemporary art museum on the campus of University College Cork. In this position, she has curated numerous exhibitions of Irish and international art including Enter Stage Left: the craft of theatre in art; Gut Instinct: Art, food and feeling; 2116: Forecast of the next century, Boolean Expressions: Contemporary art and mathematical data and Folly: Art after Architecture. Kearney has received several distinguished awards including the designation of college scholar by UCC, the NUI Prix d'Honneur from the French Government, a UCC President’s Award for Research on Innovative Forms of Teaching and the Jerome Hynes Fellowship on the Clore Leadership Programme. From 2009-2014, she served as a member of the Arts Council of Ireland and she is currently a board member of the Irish Architecture Foundation and VISUAL Carlow.

Appointed December 2020

Trish Reilly is a veterinarian, leading the Animal Welfare Division at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Recently returned from Brussels, Trish was Deputy Head of Cabinet to the European Commissioner responsible for the Creative Europe and Erasmus+ programmes 2014-2019. Prior to this, she was a member of Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn’s Cabinet, where she was responsible for research and innovation policy for health and the bioeconomy, and led the integration of gender equality across Horizon 2020, Europe’s €80 billion research and innovation programme. Trish is a member of the Board of the Tyndall National Institute, and chairs the Governance Committee of SFI research centre, BiOrbic. With eclectic interests and an open mind, Trish is deeply committed to supporting excellence in the Arts.