A solid wooden boat, inscribed with a selection of Maltese surnames that originated abroad, rests rammed into a rickety boat displaying the coordinates where migrants tragically died this year in the Mediterranean.
The artistic installation by Clint Calleja is on display in the courtyard of the Mdina Cathedral Museum in protest of the discriminatory treatment of our society with regards to migration, Mr Calleja, whose work forms part of the APS Mdina Cathedral Contemporary Art Biennale, told Times of Malta.
Maltese immigration has built an inequitable history through the years, in which the boat takes the form of a paradoxical object, he added.
“The same sea vessel that is being used nowadays by migrants as their last resort for emancipation and survival, which European countries are trying everything possible to keep away from their territory, was, earlier in Maltese history, seen as the ultimate salvation for the country.”
The exhibition comes hot on the heels of what some have termed the European migrant crisis, which saw the EU scramble to relocate asylum seekers among member states through a quota system.
The biennale, curated by Nikki Petroni with Dr Giuseppe Schembri Bonaci as the artistic director, this year shines a light on the Mediterranean as a sea of conflicting spiritualities.
The event, which is running until January 7, 2018, at the Mdina Cathedral Museum, showcases work by Maltese and international artists, who were encouraged to propose pieces that challenge artistic and political conventions.
Malta did not regard migration as a crisis but as a solution to one
Mr Calleja’s work includes a wooden boat displaying some of the most common and oldest Maltese surnames, symbolising the movement of peoples.
“Until the end of the 20th century, Malta did not regard migration as a crisis but as a solution to a crisis.
“Emigration reached its peak during the immediate decades after World War II due to the precarious economic and demographic conditions of the island.
“Balancing Malta’s rapid population growth, the increasing unemployment and the limited economic resources that Malta had to offer became a political problem.”
During this period, mass and rapid emigration functioned as a safety valve, but apart from representing the emigration era, the surnames on the side of the boat represent the movement of peoples towards Malta: none of them originated here.
However, in recent years, the boat started to be seen as a threat. Through the damaged boat, Mr Calleja wanted to state that Europeans were also responsible for the numerous tragic deaths occurring in the same sea that we swim in and proudly advertise as a main tourism attraction.
The two boats are in a process of collision, with the stronger boat – which represents the privilege Maltese citizens have over irregular immigrants – destroying the rickety boat.
“Through this frozen action, I wanted to state that we are also responsible for these tragic deaths. Unfortunately, on most occasions, we are insensitive to these events.”