Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1240944
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 APRIL 2020 5 THIS WEEK ARTS tive to the breaking news haunting our waking hours. Blitz online is conceived to be as welcoming as our galleries, and to trigger your imagination. As we adjust to a state of emergen- cy and contemplate the unknown that awaits us on the other side, a pragmatic return to yesterday's status quo seems doubtful. It is the time to deconstruct the mystifications of our society – from exponential growth to anthropocen- trism, question the conventions of time, the very existence of public space and the social canons that regulate living together. Science alone cannot address the flaws and prospects of a new soci- ety, and art can and should be a force to prevent the oblivious normalisation that will be pushed forward by more conservative powers. What can audiences expect from the online galleries that will be put up, and do you hope to also attract new crowds which may not have flocked to the gallery otherwise? Sara Dolfi Agostini: We certainly do. An online platform is the closest thing you can have to a public space now, and all you need to do is type 'www.blitz- valletta.com' into your browser to ac- cess it. Some international galleries and museums have introduced registration procedures, but we want "first time vis- itors" to experience OPEN before com- mitting to us via our newsletter. There are far too many things that are restrict- ing our freedom today, art should not be one. As we are managing the many limita- tions of virtual reality, we are also tak- ing advantage of the lack of geographi- cal borders and physical place. We are having very inspiring conversations with artists, both for the online exhibi- tion and the 'kidsathome' programmes, without forgetting our core interest in education. The online exhibition will have a downloadable catalogue, and it will be followed by more experimental projects. This is the time to think out- side of the box. Could you talk a little bit about the 'Kids at Home' aspect of the initiative? What will this entail and offer, and why did you choose this as a particular area of focus? Alexandra Pace: OPEN is not a tem- porary fix to a problem, it is the start of an initiative that we intend to maintain for the longer term. Firstly, we still have no timeline of how things will unfold in our current circumstances and second- ly, Blitz has always been interested in activity beyond its own physical space whether this is in the form of off-site projects – like our ongoing collabora- tion with artist Rossella Biscotti and the Kunsten Festival Des Arts in Brussels, or this new uncharted territory for us. OPEN is in line with core objectives of Blitz. Our exhibitions are the backbone of our institution however the opening of an exhibition is, in some ways, where the work begins. Our public programme of talks, edu- cation and children's events are as im- portant as the exhibition itself so for the launch of OPEN we have chosen to prioritise families and children who we imagine are struggling with establishing new routines without the parameters of school and outdoor activity. Through a collaboration with various Malta-based and international artists in our community, Blitz is sharing an ev- er-growing series of artistic activities, ranging from performance to drawing and sculpture. The first wave of activ- ities we have published are a collabora- tion with artists Matthew Attard, Bet- tina Hutschek and Marinella Senatore. The format of each activity is either inspired by the history of art of the twentieth century, or by the artist's practice, and through this activity the children are encouraged to send in their response or contribution which we will share on our social media platforms or, in some cases, they may even form part of a larger artwork. Speaking more broadly, how do you think the fallout of the pandemic will af- fect the local arts scene in Malta? How does Blitz hope to weather the storm, and what can we look forward to from the space when it re-emerges after a degree of 'normality' has returned? Alexandra Pace/Sara Dolfi Agostini: It is difficult to project at this early stage as this is so new to everyone. While we are dealing with the situation as an in- stitution and exploring possible solu- tions, we are also recipients of infor- mation, audiences ourselves and quite simply, human beings. The art scene is reacting in a variety of ways, from accelerated productivity and self-promotion to dealing with loss of income and projects. All this behav- ior is legitimate and we hope that the outcome will create more enfranchise- ment than suffering. But first we have to get through the difficult part. Speaking on behalf of Blitz, we are embracing the challenges and learning from the experience. Once a vulnera- bility is exposed, the natural instinct to shape-shift kicks in. Blitz was always in- tended to be modular, malleable and to respond to contemporary existence. It feels like this is the true testing ground to those statements we have previous- ly made. We are open to new collabo- rations as we empower our online and physical presence, and even more com- mitted to the local artistic and cultural infrastructure. Visit https://blitzvalletta.com/ to ex- perience the venue's revamped online gallery experience and the various initi- atives that surround it "Over the years we've written up many risk assessment plans in our forecasts and strateg y plans, but this is the first time we've ever had to really implement them" – Alexandra Pace "It is the time to deconstruct the mystifications of our society – from exponential growth to anthropocentrism, question the conventions of time, the very existence of public space and the social canons that regulate living together" – Sara Dolfi Agostini