Priceless works by artist Mattia Preti – one of the finest collections at the former National Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta – are still stashed away in storage, waiting for a new complete hall at MUŻA, the new National Museum of Art.
Officially inaugurated by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat last November, after postponements and missed deadlines, a number of artists have described the situation at MUŻA as “a disaster”.
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat congratulating Culture Minister Owen Bonnici after the completion of MUŻA last November.“What was supposed to be Malta’s flagship project for Valletta 2018 is turning out to be a national embarrassment,” one artist said.
Times of Malta revealed that some 130 paintings from MUŻA’s national collection had to be removed from public viewing as many halls of the museum were infested by mould.
Eyebrows were raised recently when tour operators started receiving emails from Heritage Malta officials announcing a sudden reduction in the entrance fees for tourists, which was lowered to €3.50.
Senior officials at MUŻA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the situation at the new €10 million museum is not very rosy.
Despite last year’s inauguration, at least six of the museum halls are still under construction as the contractor has yet to complete restoration works, one official said.
Unfortunately, the ministry ignored our recommendations
“Apart from the Mattia Preti collection, there are many works of arts still stashed away in boxes and we don’t have a clue when the work at the museum will be completed.
“Also, despite being brand ‘new’, some of the museum walls are in a very bad state due to the massive infiltration of water,” the source said.
Times of Malta is informed that humidity levels at the museum are out of control, with serious problems on the upper floors. Bad workmanship, unsealed corridors and severe flooding during years of work at the museum led to very damp walls.
According to experts, the mould outbreak is the result of a lack of professional work practices and supervision by the authorities.
Shop owners, whose establishments are adjacent to Auberge d’Italie, which houses MUŻA, said their shops had been flooded many times during the restoration work. They said their complaints while work was going on had been ignored by the Culture Ministry.
“Unfortunately, the ministry ignored our recommendations that the museum was not ready for opening last year,” a MUŻA official said.
Originally, the opening of MUŻA was scheduled to coincide with the start of Valletta 2018, when the city assumed the role of cultural capital of Europe.
However, MUŻA’s official opening missed deadlines, potentially beyond the termination of Valletta 2018.
The government forged ahead and opened the museum in November before an international conference.
Asked for a list of the works of art which has so far been removed and to state when the situation would return to normal, Heritage Malta did not reply.