Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/984659
4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 MAY 2018 THIS WEEK PHOTOGRAPHY How did the project first come about, and what led to the col- laboration that made it possi- ble? I found out, through friends, about the Deep Shelter Project, which aims to bring art into the Sir Anthony Mamo Oncol- ogy Centre. I was immediately attracted to this idea for very per- sonal reasons. My own mum is a retired oncology nurse, a breast cancer survivor and currently still under treatment for bone metas- tases. That is only one (though obvi- ously the one closest to my heart) example of how cancer has af- fected my life. I approached the wonderful Pamela Baldacchino, who runs the project, to see if she was perhaps interested in a dona- tion of one of my works. After a few meetings, and visits to get to know the setting at the Centre, it quickly escalated into the ART 4 WARD 2 project it is now. My own mum, and the staff of Ward 2 inspired me to make this ef- fort. I mean, when was the last time you heard someone say they 'need' art? Given that the photographs at the core of this project will in- evitably be serving a specific purpose, what kind of feel and approach did you take to them? Did you want to capture a spe- cific mood or feeling? None of the works were made with this project in mind. Most were done in a period of my life when I was spending time alone. I found the experience of being by myself, by the sea, taking my time to, painstakingly, create these long exposure seascapes to have a calming effect on me. It was mainly that ephemeral, almost timeless, feeling of being there in the moment that I wanted to express. Each one of these photograph- ic captures has a deep personal meaning to me. A meaning, as I found out when I started to show the captures, was understood, though often interpreted differ- ently by others. As happens so often in art, the expression of the most personal turns out to be understood and interpreted through our common humanity. Do you think there is enough awareness among the general public of the 'healing' or 're- storative' benefits of art and if not, what do you think can be done to improve this situation? For starters, not all art has these qualities, and neither should it. Art can be an expression of the exact opposite, of pain, anger, anxiety, and many other things, or even of nothing at all. How- ever I do think that as human be- ings we do have an inherent need to relieve our and oth- ers' suffering, and art is one of the means we, historically, have used for this. African American blues mu- sic comes to mind as a perfect example. Exposure to art is probably the best way to achieve a better When art becomes a necessity As the project goes on a winning crowdfunding streak, TEODOR RELJIC speaks to photographer Rik Van Colen about ART 4 WARD 2, a collaboration with the Deep Shelter Project and Valletta 2018, aiming to install art in the Sir Anthony Mamo Oncology Centre Alone After Sunset (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Hope) by Rik Van Colen Rik Van Colen