Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/621909
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 3 JANUARY 2016 30 This Week How to improve culture in Malta – from Culled from a year's worth of interviews with TEODOR RELJIC, local artists and creative practitioners let us in on their hopes for the Maltese cultural scene in the coming year... and perhaps further ahead "Hopefully, [having more Maltese curators] will help to professionalise the field and to change attitudes about exhibitions and relationships between art and publics. An exhibition is not about 'filling' a space, but about an in- formed, researched and perhaps even poetic relationship with whatever is being exhibited and with whoever has been involved (physically but also 'culturally') in the making of the works and the ideas they convey. "I am not only referring to research in an academic sense. I am thinking about the time and dedication that people put into the things they are pas- sionate about, as against the haste that we experience so often in finding cost-effective 'solutions'. "Art needs time to develop, and it usually doesn't adapt easily to the straitjacket of pre- conceived 'outcomes'. So I really hope that the professionalisation of the field we hope to achieve does not become yet another box to tick in the realm of funding schemes. Art should never be reduced to a managerial exercise because its most exciting moments always happen when perceptions are shifted or challenged." "[The theatre scene in Malta] is wonderful. Everyone does it because they love it. It has its limitations due to our size and budgets but it has soul and passion. Plus, with Malta being so tiny, I can finish work and zip off to Msida for a rehearsal – best of both worlds!" "We do have a surge of some very good quality literature. But occasionally one meets writers who don't really possess a good command of the Maltese language and thus produce work that is lacking in idiom and syntax. I think that certain aspiring writers will benefit immensely if they wait for the fruit to mature and sweetens its sap, before they move into the harvesting season." "What has been happening over the past few years is very promising. It needs what every theatre needs. It needs to be staged. The primary thing is to be recognised as being relevant and shown, directed and produced. I am sure there are loads of scripts which have never been produced on stage, a lot of award winning scripts remained in the authors drawer. Initiatives such as the Premju Francis Ebejer and the support that Malta Arts Council offers towards supporting the stag- ing of the winning script grows and the development of Maltese theatre work is supported in its develop- ment through co-productions and synergies between the traditional and the contemporary." "As I've said plenty of times over the last few years – there is definitely something happen- ing. When I compare the scene now to when I founded the company 11 years ago it's like looking at two different worlds. There seems to be a growing interest in theatre, more people seem to want to be involved in it and more want to watch it. "As an educator I am particu- larly pleased with how things are shaping themselves in the world of theatre for the young while as a writer I would like to see more people put pen to paper and just go for it. I also want to see our audiences de- velop a stronger, more vocal sense of discussion and debate about art in general." Raphael Vella – art lecturer, Artistic Director of the Valletta International Visual Arts Festival Simone Spiteri – teacher, actress, director and scriptwriter for theatre Alexandra Pace – curator, BLITZ "I think it is neither possible, nor is it sensible or viable [for artists] to sur- vive entirely on public funding. On whether there is enough support in terms of quantity, I suspect local art- ists and creatives will never feel satis- fied. I believe that comes more from a general feeling of entitlement; the be- lief we should be supported irrespec- tive of what it is that we are creating. I personally disagree with this. "Making do with what we have does not mean that our limited resources should be distributed for everyone to get a chance, but rather it should be invested in those who are innova- tive and producing projects and ideas that are radical and experimental, en- gaging audiences with a strong pub- lic programme. In the longer term I believe that this will improve educa- tion through exposure to high calibre projects, in turn raising the standard of projects both large and small." Jimmy Grima – theatre director Thomas Camilleri – actor Trevor Zahra – author