New Maltese Project Will Take Malta’s Famous ‘Antiporta’ To Acclaimed Exhibition In Venice
A group of architects, artists and other creatives are coming together to catalogue an often-overlooked feature of traditional Maltese housing – the antiporta. The project by Chris Briffa Architects, will form part of the TIME SPACE EXISTENCE exhibition at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2018.
The subject matter is the ‘extra’ inner door found in old homes, commonly known as an antiporta, which provided a certain level of privacy and security to those who lived inside, but also a quicker method of accessibility.
But as more and more modern buildings are constructed, it seems the antiporta is destined for the annals of history.
Under the detailed eye of creative director Chris Briffa, together with curator Andrew Borg Wirth, architectural assistant Katrina Galea, project coordinator Louise Spokes, photographer David Zammit and research and consultation by Lisa Gwen Baldacchino, the team is hoping to tell the stories of each unique antiporta and plug them into the buzz that already characterises the Venice Biennale.
In Venice, there will be a “tangible and experiential setup” with a focus on cross-media in its delivery, bringing together the outputs of the several members of this team.
The piece will also be site-specific and will use the language of the room it is set in (in Venice) to transport a very familiar, local experience, into an altogether other setting. It will be a conversation about how time projects itself on space.
Together with the help of the Project Support Grant, the Malta Arts Fund – Arts Council Malta, the Valletta 2018 Foundation and with a sponsorship by Camilleri Paris Mode, the team hopes to see an increase in awareness of the antiporta’s significance, and with that a rise in the appreciation for its value, both culturally and as an addition to modern homes.
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