Advertising and events to promote the Maltabiennale.art cost the government more than €300,000, parliament was told on Monday.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo provided the figure in response to a parliamentary question by Nationalist Party MP Julie Zahra.

Bartolo said his ministry spent €100,000 on advertising and events linked to the event, while the Malta Tourism Authority spent €224,713.

He said the funding was approved by the Finance Ministry.

In June, the House was told that the biennale’s launch event - held in March at the National Museum of Arts in Valletta - cost €72,383 excluding VAT.

The total budget allocated to the biennale was €1.7 million.

The Maltabiennale.art was held between March and May and included the participation of 80 artists from 23 countries whose work ranged from painting and drawing to installation, sculpture, and video.

The Maltabiennale.art received criticism from the arts industry lobby MEIA, which slammed a “lack of professionalism” behind the large-scale event.

The Nationalist Party also criticised the “disappointing” Malta Biennale, saying it was “more expensive” than the world-renowned Venice Biennale.