Despite key players very publicly dropping the ball of late, the culture scene in Malta is thriving. ‘Challenge 2020’ will be to live up to the bar set by Valletta 2018 Capital of Culture and to cultivate our vast creative wealth.
A year on, V18 is broadly considered to have been a success. The Final Research Report found public opinion favourable, with firm confidence in its long-term impact. Notable failures included the overdue inauguration of the new national art gallery MUZA, depriving two million tourists that year of V18’s flagship project. Then came ‘mould-gate’: a failure to monitor and maintain air humidity levels, which resulted in many pieces being removed from the museum’s collection. MUZA’s project leader Sandro Debono then departed. But, for the most part, V18 deserves praise.
More than half the tourists who visit Malta do so for culture, according to surveys, so the continuing boom in numbers affects the arts and historic sites. Partly due to V18, Heritage Malta recently reported a record-breaking 400,000 increase in visitors. The recent presence of Cirque du Soleil demonstrates Malta’s international pull, and its increasing presence on the circuit for big-name DJs and bands means Isle of MTV and the various club and music festivals now attract young cultural tourists.
Live music, opera and theatre are flourishing, as is comedy, with an emerging stand-up scene and visiting celebrity comedians. New film, dance and food festivals are springing up, as are craft fairs, awards and competitions. Creative hubs and galleries are proliferating, enabling more visual artists to practise and exhibit their work.
The Cultural Participation Survey 2016 found that 22 per cent of the population considers itself to be an artist, which explains the profusion of creative production and near obsession with performing arts. An occasional casualty of this great abundance, however, can be quality. Meanwhile, Gozo has a growing community of visual artists and is becoming a destination for yoga, meditation and wellness activities.
Developments in 2019 included the establishment of a new national choir and the Valletta Cultural Agency, guardians of the legacy of V18. Other legacy projects include Festivals Malta and the Valletta Design Cluster, “a community space for cultural and creative practice” opening soon.
Arts Council Malta noted a 2.7 per cent increase in cultural investment in 2019 “with a total budget of €85.8m for cultural heritage, the arts, media and creative sectors”, the largest increase of €2.8m being attributed to the arts.
Unfortunately, the Council’s own funding opportunities are a sore spot for many artists due to negative perceptions of the organisation itself. Regardless of whether there is substance behind the talk, it’s a public relations issue, which, if left unaddressed, will fester within the very community the Council exists to support. Malta’s creatives also recently lost out on a major Creative Europe fund (European Cooperation Projects) due to a vacancy lasting several months. The Council invited potential applicants to a presentation three weeks before the deadline, at which it was acknowledged that it was too late to apply.
Notwithstanding frustrations behind the scenes, and provided creative producers keep polishing their craft, the cultural scene looks set to remain bountiful. This year brings us superstar Celine Dion and, in 2022, MICAS, a contemporary art space to put Malta on the world-map.
New year’s recommendations for those in charge would be to improve efficiency, transparency and communication, and for creatives to keep striving for greatness. The rest of us should sit back and enjoy the rich cultural gifts 2020 promises to deliver.