Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/814533
42 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 23 APRIL 2017 Events PA commemorates first year... with others in mind Abstract art speaks volumes To commemorate the first year of the new Planning Authority, the management and its employees collected funds for Puttinu Cares by organising a number of fund- raising initiatives at the premises of the Authority. Through these initiatives and the further contribution of the Au- thority's management, the Plan- ning Authority donated €15,000 to the Puttinu Care Foundation during the Good Friday Xarabank fund-raising marathon. "We believe that supporting local charities, such as Puttinu Cares, is a symbolic way of commemo- rating our first year since the demerger took place," Johann Buttigieg, chairperson of the executive council of the Author- ity, said. "Throughout the year, as an organisation, we organised many fundraising activities and initiatives to help local charities, and therefore we thought it was appropriate to close off our first year with an initiative of solidar- ity." During the past year, the Author- ity managed to achieve a number of milestones one of which is that for the first time in 20 years, the Authority finished off the year with a profit. Another important fact has been that the pend- ing caseload has been brought down, in spite of the fact that the Authority handled some 8,000 planning applications last year. This achievement is partly the result of a greater focus that has been placed on internal pro- cesses, the reorganisation of the development control unit and the upgrading of IT systems. During the past year, the Author- ity also started tackling long- standing enforcement issues through a two-year regularisation scheme for illegalities within the development zone. Through this initiative and the fees it receives, the Authority has managed to in- crease funding opportunities for local councils and launched the successful Restawr Darek Grant Scheme. While the regularisation scheme is only one part of an attempt to really get to grips with the enforcement system, the Author- ity also embarked on successful concerted effort to persuade own- ers that it was in their interest to remove illegalities – rather than have them removed by the Au- thority at their expense through so-called direct actions. Over the past year infringements removed by owners have almost doubled. The Planning Authority recently welcomed renowned Maltese art- ist Luciano Micallef as the guest speaker as part of the Authority's monthly educational/cultural activities. Luciano Micallef was invited to deliver an illustrated presentation outlining his career as a contemporary artist. During the lecture, Micallef ex- plained the evolutionary process by referring to his early works and giving reasons to why he opted for abstract painting as his preferred expression. He gave a brief explanation of the most salient movements of the early twentieth century; cubism by Picasso, Braque and Juan Gris, ex- pressionists with Ludwig Kichner and Emile Nolde, futurism, sur- realism by Magritte and others. Micallef emphasised that all these artists were not simply interested in reproducing nature but in con- verting the subject into a image that evokes thought. "Art should entice one to think and be creative with the interpre- tations. Art is not about technical bravados, art should promote in the viewer the ability to think in a different and unusual manner," he said. "An artist is more of a philoso- pher because he constantly deals with a thinking process. Art should reveal the hidden answers to our questions concerning life and all that surrounds us, there- fore making the invisible visible." Micallef explained how abstract painting suited him most because it is synonymous to life itself; it is unpredictable, it has no bounda- ries, it can be contradictory as well as futile. "Abstract art changes its defini- tion and meaning constantly, and like life it is inexplicable. Finally each person reads something dif- ferent in a single artwork." Though Micallef 's art may for some appear banal or useless however it can lead those who have a disposition to learn and understand. It can also lead on to a path of self-discovery. Most art encourages dialogue which follows by questions that may eventually lead to answers while further questions follow. The process keeps unfolding. "When certain people, who are often deprived of information, criticise Picasso for example, saying that his works are rubbish, they are talking about their own lack of knowledge and not about Picasso," Micallef said. During the same activity, the Authority organised a raffle for all those present during Micallef 's lecture. A hand screen-print from a limited edition signed by the artist was awarded to Carmen Vassallo. Planning Authority staff attended Luciano Micallef's presentation outlining his career as a contemporary artist The Planning Authority donated €15,000 to the Puttinu Care Foundation during the Good Friday Xarabank fund-raiser PHOTO BY GARETH