
During a meeting entitled “Architecture for culture” we presented a concept of constructing a Malta Festival art and research centre in Poznań. The space, inspired by La FabricA created by the festival in Avignon, would be a place for artistic events, education of audiences and artists, presentation of events, as well as socio-artistic projects.
Since 2010 Malta Festival Poznań has been cooperating with over 60 theatres and festivals form Poland and abroad, it is behind 17 co-productions, 19 productions and 115 new projects with the participation of children, teens, adults and seniors. Over the last 6 years the festival has presented 1764 plays, films, meetings, exhibitions and concerts, which were attended by 420 000 audience members and it has invited 165 international artistic groups. The centre planned by Malta Festival Poznań is to serve the festival projects in combining the functions which for years have been fulfilled in different locations around the city:
– all-year-round and festival-related events - theatre performances, concerts, films, exhibitions, lectures, happenings and play readings,
– implementation of international and Polish theatre, dance, music and opera productions as well as site-specific and work in progress projects,
– education through masterclasses and summer schools, seminars, conferences and workshops for professionals and beginners,
– artistic and social actions in communal space, workshops for children, teens and adults, as well as experiments with new forms.
The design of the new space is being developed by Maria Godlewska, an architect working in Poland and France and the author of designs for art-related venues, including the La FabricA building in Avignon, whose functionality is an inspiration for the space in Poznań. Similarly to Avignon’s La FabricA, the research and art centre of Malta festival is to be comprised of a theatre stage, residential space for artists, storage area and a space for technical works and a workshop space with an open art courtyard.
Poznań City Hall declared the possibility of granting the perpetual usufruct of a lot located on the corner of ul.Północna and ul.Księcia Józefa for the implementation of the cultural and educational investment planned by the festival.