Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/652704
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 13 MARCH 2016 10 News Full Colour Version C: M: Y: K: 0 0 0 100 C: M: Y: K: 0 100 100 0 C: M: Y: K: 50 100 100 20 TUNA AQUAMED MFF Ltd. - Hangar, Triq it-Trunciera, Marsaxlokk MXK1522 T: 2247 5000 E: contact@ebcon.com.mt www.mff.com.mt Farmed in Maltese offshore waters and delivered to you with special attention to freshness and to the highest standards. LOOK FOR OUR QUALITY MARK IN YOUR SUPERMARKET, FISHMONGER OR RESTAURANT FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. EAT FRESH EAT HEALTHY ENJOY OUR SEA BREAM Valletta: more than just A new Valletta 2018 Foundation initiative, Naqsam il-MUZA, places the capital city's residents at its centre. Could projects of this kind be the solution to the Foundation's ongoing problems with community outreach, and will this lead to a more sensitive appraisal of the risk that 'Capital of Culture' could mean gentrification by stealth, TEODOR RELJIC asks? COMMUNITY outreach and legacy remain the key challenges for the Valletta 2018 Foundation as it ramps up towards its cru- cial deadline – or is it a starting point? – a mere two years down the line. This may not be a scien- tific statement, but I'm confident that it holds true for two simple reasons. 'Legacy' is a term trotted out, often ad nauseam, in nearly every V18 press conference, and it's something of an open secret that winning the hearts and minds of those who are not certified cul- ture-vultures remains something of a blind spot for the Founda- tion. Recent internal shake-ups, as well as academic soul-search- ing exercises – such as an up- coming conference on 'Cities as Community Spaces' – betray a nervousness about cracking this particular nut. But the recently inaugurated 'Naqsam il-MUZA' project may just be a step in the right direc- tion, if initial reactions are to be believed. The 'MUZA' in the title refers to the new site of the National Museum of Fine Arts, which will migrate from South Street to Merchants Street under the auspices of Valletta 2018. But the MUZA project is also geared towards understanding and assessing how best to ensure that the move takes full advan- tage of this upgrade to the Mu- seum. As the name suggests, 'Naqsam il-MUZA' is an active attempt to 'share' the contents of the mu- seum – the pun of 'muza' as 'in- spiration' is not lost either – and in fact, the initiative got together 10 Valletta residents to select an artifact or work from the Muse- um and to say something about it. Reproductions of the pieces – with the reactions of those who selected them – are now placed in strategic parts of Valletta. Speaking to MaltaToday, An- tonella Grech, a teacher who par- ticipated in the project, strongly believed that it succeeds as a community outreach exercise. Having selected the painting 'View of the Three Cities from Valletta' (late 18th –early 19th Century) by Louis Ducros as her favourite piece, Grech described the part of Valletta depicted in the painting as "a distinctive icon" with a special resonance for her, since she is from the harbour area. Putting the urgency of the Naqsam il-MUZA project into focus, Grech confessed to not be- ing all that aware about MUZA and Valletta 2018 before she was called to participate, "as in fact I think most people aren't – they need to promote it a bit more I think". She quickly added that however, her involvement with 'Naqsam il-MUZA' showed that this could change quite quickly if the right techniques are applied. Claiming that she was "honoured" to be selected as a participant, Grech described the excitement of her friends seeing her picture on the papers and online media in con- junction with the project. "They immediately started ask- ing me why I was in the paper, Alexiei Dingli Antonella Grech Lesann Caldwell