A photography and video-based exhibition currently running at the Valletta Contemporary art gallery is tackling a very topical issue: the commodification of land. 

This Land is Your Land features the works of Berlin-based Kazakhstani artist Almagul Menlibayeva, and Greek artist Mikhail Karikis, who is based in London and Lisbon.

Both creatives are very concerned with the appropriation of land and each relate their experiences and give their own interpretation of the subject through examples of economic exploitation in Kazakhstan, Britain and Italy.

These works could, however, be considered as a response to current debates in Malta about land use and large-scale plans of urban developments.

Butterfly (2010) by Almagul Menlibayeva

“Malta is one of the most densely populated nations in Europe and in the world. Space is extremely contested and the mechanisms of economisation are very tangible,” Maren Richter, the exhibition’s curator, says.

“The limitation of space, the population’s rapid growth and the expanding property market, to name a few, are making community members, NGOs and activists increasingly concerned about the quality of life on the island.”

The exhibition’s title is borrowed from one of the most famous American folk songs by Woody Guthrie, about a progressive utopia land with no ownership of property.

Austria-based Ms Richter, who was the curator of the main visual arts exhibition of Valletta 2018, has been researching the notion of ‘territory’ for quite a while. She engaged the two artists specifically because, in her opinion, they tackle the subject in “amazing ways”.

Ms Menlibayeva and Mr Karikis use performative means to entice communities to take a deeper look into how transformation and exploitation of land over time has changed their way of living and modes of survival.

“Their work shows that artists around the world share the same concern by searching for narratives to thematise changing and disappearing territories and their geopolitical and economic agendas,” Ms Richter notes. 

This Land is Your Land works on display at the Valletta Contemporary art gallery.

“In this context, climate change, lost habitats and rituals, neocolonialism, utopias, mythologies and also unknown dimensions of time, space and form enter into a complex dialogue about permeable, fragile spatial concepts,” she adds.

Ms Menlibayeva focuses on the indigenous life on the steppes of Kazakhstan and gives a central narrative role to strong female mythological figures such as centaurs (half-human, half-horse creatures) in order to refer to current gender politics and inequality. She also alludes to the harsh economic survival of post-Soviet and post-industrial rural towns and to future generations.

Community members, NGOs and activists are increasingly concerned about the quality of life on the island

“The artist uses the language of tales in her videos and photography and combines it with documentary elements, creating a very specific filmic narrative,” Ms Richter says.

This Land is Your Land works on display at the Valletta Contemporary art gallery.

Mr Karikis also works with local communities, very often with children in post-industrial regions. In his videos, he encourages these kids to make their voices heard and revolt against the status quo, or else give articulate accounts of their experiences.

Sound is a very important aspect of both artists’ works.

“Mr Karikis treats sound as a ‘sonic sculpture’. In a way, he also tries to make people feel attached to the landscape, motivating them to ‘imitate’ their sounds, for example, of a former coal mine at a geothermic site,” Ms Richter points out.

“It almost feels like ritualising the fact that these landscapes are not just landscapes but shape our ideas of belonging and identity. In Ms Menlibayeva’s work, the sound underlines the rituals of life too.”

The curator says that the two well-known artists were “extremely excited” to exhibit together for the first time in Malta and that she was likewise looking forward to present their work to the Maltese public.

“We have a female and male point of view on the subject as well. It is a unique occasion, but I am sure it will not be the last time we will see their work in one exhibition,” she remarks.

This Land is Your Land runs at the Valletta Contemporary art gallery at 15-17, East Street, Valletta, until Wednesday. Opening hours: Tuesday to Saturday from 11.30am to 7pm. Entrance is free.

Almagul Menlibayeva’s Centaur (2011) and The Breakfast for the Beast (2015).