Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1376560
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 MAY 2021 6 CULTURE 16 cultural and creative pro- grammes were recently award- ed a total of €433,333 under the Programme Support Scheme, as part of the RESTART Schemes 2021. The scheme is part of a wider-ranging commitment on the part of government to en- sure a robust recovery of the creative industries by bolstering the sector following the chal- lenges presented by the COV- ID-19 pandemic. The scheme attracted 39 ap- plications, out of which 16 were awarded funds. Malta- Today caught up with two of the awarded applicants – Blitz director Alexandra Pace and visual artist Thomas Scerri – to find out more about how this funding will help them re- start their programming activi- ty, once again opening the door to audience engagement. "When COVID-19 hit, my work was in full swing. I had a dozen projects in the pipeline and I was succeeding in build- ing a strong audience. I had found my rhythm," Thomas Scerri starts out. "Then 2020 arrived and my career came to an abrupt halt. I had to cancel or postpone all upcoming pro- jects, but in reality I actually started working harder than ever." The flipside being, of course, that the work Thom- as was creating remained – at the time – inaccessible to his audience. "I applied for the Programme Support Scheme because I wouldn't have oth- erwise been able to shoulder the cost of delivering a full visual arts project to an audi- ence. When you're putting up a cultural event, the costs pile up tremendously – from the exhibition itself to the ancil- lary events, such as the work- shops," Thomas explains. The Programme Support Scheme is making it possible for him to realize Rooftops, a visual arts project that encompasses a number of workshops and an exhibition of paintings and sculpture at the Malta Society of Arts, in Valletta. "Rooftops ties together several themes, including the isolation COV- ID-19 brought with it, the anx- ieties and the feeling of being overwhelmed…. All coupled with the constant sounds of construction surrounding us. It is about living through a pandemic within a constrained space, about our need for natu- ral spaces, about having to live under lockdown within an ur- ban environment…" Thomas adds that, without funding support, the project – which brings together some nine paintings and 10 sculp- tures – would have had to be considerably scaled down. As it is, he is now in a position to fol- low up this project with other, including artistic residencies away from Malta. Blitz director Alexandra Pace echoes Thom- as's words, explaining how the Programme Support Strand has made it possible for Blitz to extend and expand its hybrid programme. "Like everyone else, Blitz had to close its doors when the pandemic struck. Luckily, we already had a re- search process going on, as well as plans for an online space. We had been discussing the possibilities of exploring the digital footprint for some time and, in spite of all the hardship COVID-19 brought with it, we took it as an opportunity to set the wheels in motion for this new project," Alexandra says. This, she adds, was done while taking the utmost care to ensure the space is curated to the usual Blitz standard. In June, the first online exhibition was launched – a six-month series of video works that all came together in December. "We do not wish for this on- line space we have established to be lost, once the pandemic is over. On the contrary, the idea is to expand it so it can run in parallel with the physical space – in short, it's not a Plan B," she says. Through the Pro- gramme Support Scheme, Blitz is now in a position to fund the upcoming Blitz Online Residencies and Open Call for Malta-Based Emerging Talent. The online programme will see Blitz offering three online res- idencies that will embrace the benefits of a lack of physical distance and geographical bor- ders of online platforms, while exploring art's capacity to re- define collective imagination. "The funding has helped myself and Sara Dolfi Agos- tini extend the work that has already been done in this on- line sphere."An open call will also be launched in 2022, with emerging artists offered the chance to be awarded a project produced and curated by Blitz, and published in a catalogue. "The above is part of a larg- er programme that includes (amongst others) a produc- tion currently in process with Rossella Biscotti, as well as our 're-opening show' entitled Gravity," Alexandra concludes. We spoke to Arts Council Malta Funding and Strategy Director Mary-Ann Cauchi, who explained that this scheme was part of a €1.3 million pack- age offered by the government as direct COVID-19 assistance. The scheme is primarily in- tended as an investment in the sector, aiding the restart, development and creation of new work while responding to the challenges currently be- ing faced. "A lot of schemes have been re-designed due to COVID-19, but this fund alone offers a maximum of €60,000 to each beneficiary. Awarded projects can take place over an 18-month period and can cov- er a series of events, a festival or a programme. Moreover, for the first time both new projects and existing ones are eligible as we wanted to widen the spec- trum of our support as much as possible," Cauchi said. Other measures aimed at drastically increasing the sup- port offered by this scheme include the fact that each awarded project was eligible for funding of up to 80% of the total costs. Moreover, expenses such as existing salaries were eligible for inclusion in the re- maining 20%, thus considera- bly widening the support net. Beneficiaries were also given one month to finalise the pa- perwork, so as to smoothen the process as much as possible. More information about the Programme Support Scheme and other funding opportuni- ties can be found on artscoun- cil.mt 16 cultural and creative programmes awarded €433,333 as part of the RESTART Schemes 2021 Blitz director Alexandra Pace (left), Culture Minister Jose Herrera (centre) and visual artist Thomas Scerri (right)