30,000 Pounds For a Lot Of Balls

In a sector constantly screaming for funding, conceptual artist Martin Creed must be laughing all the way to the bank - he's just sold a load of old balls, literally, to the National Gallery of Modern Art for 30,000 pounds. But then, this piece of "art" is by the same man who won the 2001 Turner Prize for his work entitled The Lights Going On And Off - a room containing nothing more than a light being switched on and off repeatedly. The gallery's latest acquisition entitled, oddly enough, Balls - lots of creativity there then - consists of 800 footballs and inflatable beach balls in different colours and sizes strewn across the gallery floor. And when the piece goes on display to the public next year, visitors will be invited to wander among the balls, kicking them as they go. For the full story - click the title Irish Art