Report

Day 1, Saturday 7th
St James Cavalier- Valletta



Introduction to the workshop by Love Difference (LD - Emanuela Baldi, Filippo Fabbrica, Abdallah Daif) explaining the schedule and aim of the workshop and the role of the participants, and the coordinators (LD and Atelier).

Individual presentations: each person introduced themselves through an object which they feel represents themselves in some way. These were then all placed in the centre of the group. Participants spoke freely about themselves and others spontaneously asked questions about the object and its meanings.

The group is an interdisciplinary one, some of the people already worked together as part of the AS_TIDE project others as part of the MOC staff team, while others are new to the group of people.

The group is then divided into two rows, where participants are invited to stand one opposite another. Imagining being the person in front of them, they are asked some questions.

A final collective drawing by all the participants based on the discussions in the workshop, collected the impressions of the first day.

In the afternoon the workshop continued in a restricted group consisting of the artists and cultural operators (the outsiders). Also the mayor of the town of Marsa was present during this session and he put forward his point of view, also discussing the issue of immigration with all its political implications.

The coordinators then explained the objectives of the workshop and the roles of everybody.

 

Day 2, Sunday 8th
St James Cavalier - Valletta

The new participants introduced themselves using their object, while the other participants presented themselves again, adding some new information about themselves.
Following this, an open discussion on the theme of immigrants lasted about an hour. This allowed participants to air certain thoughts and to start to look into the way others think about the subject. Also contribution of new information from different participants and new angles and opinions on the subject resulted.

From here the group proceeded to the MOC in order to ‘enter’ the centre from the outside whilst being aware of the process and its impact. Divided into three groups, the conversation is maintained within the smaller groups, each of which containing one person from the MOC. During the journey there is the opportunity to discover more details and info about the place.

A workshop is organised inside the centre. Participants were invited to note their impressions and feelings upon entering the centre, as though it were the first time. Some participants were totally new to this environment, others were very familiar.
The answers to the question “What do you feel upon entering the MOC?” elicits a number of different replies. The main themes were the feeling of being an outsider to the place of watching and being watched. The impact of the run-down state of the place was also a common observation.

In the afternoon, the workshop continued in a restricted group consisting of the artists and cultural operators (the outsiders). The coordinators gave a brief outline of the MOC and explained structures managing the MOC.
Following this a brief session of Q & As.

 

Day 3, Monday 9th
Marsa Open Centre - Marsa

The morning was dedicated to organising the space of the w-s. Drawings and outputs of the previous days were hung up on the walls.

The afternoon session began with all the participants present, and the presentation of participants was completed.

The workshop focused on the Image of the place - progressing from a subjective map of the centre, to an expression of emotions and expectations.

Each participant drew a personal map of the Centre, and was then asked to reply to the following questions by marking their map with a symbol, a colour or a sentence.

Each participant then described their map and the reasons for their answers.
This exercise already began to give clear reflections of the general feelings of the participants for the space, as well as some indications of the kinds of initiatives many were imagining that could happen.

The workshop winds down with a coffee break, where the participants have the opportunity to have individual or small group conversations.

After the MOC operators leave the group, a brief discussion is continued in a restricted group consisting of the artists and cultural operators (the outsiders). The maps are discussed, similarities are noted and personal observations are put forward.

 

Day 4, Tuesday 10th
Marsa Open Centre - Marsa

The morning was used to collect the information of the previous day, to visit the Centre individually, and to establish one to one dialogues with the staff.

The workshop commenced with a SWOT analysis. The participants were asked to reflect on the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats of the Marsa Open Centre – these were tacked one at a time, using a different coloured post-it for each one.

After each participant wrote the word or sentence which fit each of the above, they were invited to explanation their words/sentences to the rest of the group.
The group then reflected on the points raised, highlighting the most important or common points that emerged in each section.

The group dynamic was rekindled with a dose of laughter during the game of ‘kiss the rabbit’.

The first part of the Planning of the New Centre followed. Three mixed groups (mixed departments, artists, outsiders) were asked to plan the new imaginary MOC with an unlimited budget. A new structure, management, activities and rules had to be planned.
Maps of the centre, colours, dough, bricks and a number of other tools were available to the groups in order to plan, visualise and build in any way preferred.
Each group then presented their ideas to the rest of the group.

Observations: Although plans had particular characteristics which reflected the ideas, ideals and ambitions of the group and for the place, a number of similarities were observed. The most prominent being controlled access to the Centre, a reduction in number of residents and a clear division between public and private space. The overall vision of the 3 groups was very much in line.

 

Day 5, Wednesday 11th
Marsa Open Centre - Marsa

The morning was used to collect the information of the previous day, to visit the Centre individually, and to establish one to one dialogues with the staff.

The workshop commenced with a recap of the previous days, going through the various outcomes and briefly over the main points emerging from the SWOT.
The values of the people were highlighted as one of the main points emerging from all the outcomes.

The group was then asked to imagine that in a number of years, they would have a grandchild, to who they would teach something that they themselves learnt from being at the MOC.
Keeping this in mind, they were invited to fill the blank in the sentence: “My grandfather/mother worked at Marsa Open Centre, he/she learnt …… and taught it to me”.

The words were then stuck on the board by each person, who also read out their sentence and explained the reason for their choice of word.

The planning of Tuesday was then resumed, however this time the budget was cut down, so priorities had to be selected when finalising the new Centre.
A list of priorities was asked to be identified for the Centre, together with a list of roles that each participant had to identify within the plan.

After the workshop, a lengthy discussion continued in a restricted group consisting of the artists and cultural operators (the outsiders).
The experiences of the past days were collected, and the goal of the project was discussed – the aim being to collect information, and then to return it to the people who work at the MOC.

Observations:
A very strong emphasis on the people was felt in all the outcomes – the operators of the MOC – and it was observed that this reflected very strongly in the work done at the Centre.
Many different tensions emerged from the operators throughout the workshop; mainly caused by the nature of their work, and sometimes reflecting on their relationships with each other. These tensions may also be exacerbated by the fact that the operators in the Centre do not have a space of their own – where they can communicate with each other on a daily basis – and are constantly in contact with the residents who approach them with questions and requests at all times, also during out of work hours.
Yet it was felt that notwithstanding the enormous tension on the operators, there are many strong values present in each individual, and although these values are not ‘received’ by the place, the general consensus was that the strength of the place lies in the people working there, who believe in the value of their work and who input a lot of energy into what they do.
As was suspected from the start, it was strongly felt by the group that the vision for the place was more an individual one rather than a collective one, mainly due to the points mentioned above.

 

Day 6, Thursday 12th
Marsa Open Centre

The morning was used to collect the information of the previous day, to visit the Centre individually, and to establish one to one dialogues with the staff.

For the conclusion of the workshop and the presentation of the individual group work of the New Centre, two main points were taken from the “values” identified the previous day, these being respect and dialogue.

Each group got together for the last time over their plan for the New Centre in order to collate all the information put together over the last sessions, in order to present the plan envisaged, whilst considering whether the project answers the following question:

A presentation of the group projects and of the individual roles was then made to the group.

Observations:
A number of interesting observation emerged from the presentation of the groups, both in terms of the questions posed and in the selection of roles. In case of the former, many elements of the planning of the New Centre were common to all groups in particular with reference to security of the Centre and the residents, as well as to respect of the residents in terms of the allocation of personal space (decreased number of residents and increased privacy) and common space (a common space for cultural activities, a shared eating area and refurbished outdoor spaces to increase interaction and dialogue).
The choice of roles also reflected the fact that most of the operators were happy doing the jobs they already do (most retained their current role in the Centre) while some redefined their role by making it more specific.

Following the presentations, a moment of instinctive inputs and emotions were shared through two group activities.

Standing in two rows facing each other, each participant was asked to write a personal proposal that they will apply in the next future including an indication of the time it would take them to realise it. This was shared with the partner facing them, who would become the “owner” of their resolution and who was entrusted with the task of checking whether their partner did what they proposed.

Closure of the workshop and final presentation of the process to the guests invited to attend this final presentation event.
The closing event was started by the LD team who thanked participants and who summed up the workshop events. A few words were then made by Ahmed Bugre and Oliver, MOC Manager and Suret il-Bniedem Director, respectively.
The presentation was filmed by National TV and journalists were present to take comments and interviews for the local newspaper.