A one-off, handmade book featuring photos of the people who make up the community of Ħamrun is being presented to the nation as part of a project that aims to document a country on the cusp of change.

St James Centre for Creativity is hosting The Great Book of Malta, Vol. 1: Ħamrun. The gigantic, hand-bound, A3-sized book, which is the result of hundreds of hours’ worth of work by amateur photographers and Spanish master craftsman German Hernandez, will then be housed at an appropriate national institution.

“This book aims to be a snapshot of the trades, the businesses, the people, the fashions and the nuances that make up the community of Ħamrun in 2016,” says John Baraldi, the project coordinator and a resident of Ħamrun, who was inspired by a book project in Ireland that aimed to create an equivalent to The Book of Kells, a medieval, illuminated manuscript.

“In many ways, The Great Book of Malta is a celebration of the ordinary… a celebration of life in Ħamrun in a street by street manner and an attempt to capture the soul of the town,” Baraldi says. “It includes portraits of hairdressers, upholsterers, greengrocers, bands, ironmongers, corner-shop owners, bakers, tailors, shoemakers, tattoo artists, butchers, pigeon fanciers, horse owners, office workers, car repairers, pet-shop owners, pastizzi vendors, musicians, and every sort of person who makes Ħamrun what it is: a living, breathing community.”

The creation of the physical book has been placed in the hands of Hernandez, a Spanish artist and book restorer whose workshop can be found in Valletta. The final artefact will be leather-bound by hand and will measure 29.7 x 42cm. Once it is completed, it will be presented to the nation in a leather and glass box to protect the workmanship and the contents.

The Great Book of Malta is a celebration of the ordinary... a celebration of life in Ħamrun

“This project doesn’t only aim to give to the nation of Malta a way of remembering those who formed part of the community of Ħamrun in the early months of 2016, but to also bring together individuals from different communities and nations in a celebration of Maltese culture and traditions,” says Baraldi.

While over 5,000 photographs were taken by 12 young photographers, the book will only include some 200 photographs. Even so, all the photos will be presented alongside the book in a digital archive that will incorporate information about each photograph and the names of everyone who worked on the first part of this monumental project. Moreover, the photos are to be projected on a huge screen at Pjazza Teatru Rjal in Valletta as part of a big stage show about Ħamrun in October.

“We decided to work with young, amateur photographers for a number of reasons,” says Baraldi. “Firstly, we wanted this to be a community-based project in which everyone who was part of it grew on a personal and professional level. Secondly, we wanted to instil a deeper appreciation and understanding of the Maltese Islands and the communities that make up the nation. Thirdly, a project of this magnitude is a wonderful for aspiring photographers and we hope it has given them a sense of wanderlust and inquisitiveness.”

Apart from the book, Baraldi and his team are in the process of creating a series of video slideshows set to music. They also printed 10 large, eight by four feet prints that are being exhibited at St James Centre for Creativity until May 22, before touring Ħamrun.

“There’s so much pride in the town of Ħamrun and we are sure that people will appreciate seeing themselves or their neighbours becoming the stars of this project. It is also a great way of promoting the locality as a destination with so much to see even with other Maltese people – after all, we all too often forget to look for the beauty within our own communities.”

Baraldi hopes to create such a book for each locality in Malta and Gozo, thus capturing the essence of a nation that is quickly changing and evolving.

“The reality is that we have no idea whether this project will ever be finalised,” Baraldi says. “Even so, while Malta is full of monuments and paintings of the great and powerful, The Great Book of Malta aims to celebrate the beauty and power of its ordinary people, and it is their portraits that will be saved for future generations to dissect, study, learn from and reminisce about.”

The Great Book of Malta, Vol 1: Ħamrun is being exhibited at St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity in Valletta until May 22.

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