Rituals of Passage is the result of a co-creative project between Ryan Falzon, Aaron Bezzina, Alexandra Fraser, Yasmine Akondo, Mladen Hadžić, and Stefan Kolgen. Rituals are part of everyday life. During times of distress, they give comfort. The title is based on the fact that rituals can bring you from one stage to another physically and mentally. Post-covid rituals can help us find balance in a disrupted society where attention to mental health and well-being has become important. Rituals can help make us name and discuss these issues. The artists created the works with the exhibition space in mind, presenting them in such a way that they interact with each other and that they challenge the viewer, offering context for the audience to create their own story. During the opening weekend some works will be accompanied by a performance and a discussion session about the meaning of rituals will be organized, followed by a meet and greet with the artists.
The exhibition takes place from 3 March till 6 May at Valletta Contemporary. Curated by Stefan Kolgen and Ann Laenen and supported by the Flemish Community, Sint Lucas Antwerpen and Valletta Contemporary
Placemaking is about people, about living together, about a sense of belonging and carving spaces together, about co- creation and sharing stories. And it is crucial for society, especially now as it enters a new dimension in times of a global pandemic that affects us all. What will placemaking look like after COVID-19? What did we learn and what can we take with us to the future? How will we socialise, move from one place to another, (inter)act with and in public spaces after the pandemic?
In 2017 I had the pleasure to work with the great team of the Erasmus Hogeschool (EhB) – Department of Design and Technology – in Brussels on a new curriculum called 
Active Design Processes – Collaborative Practice – A course for the 3rd years Digital Design at the Faculty of Media and Knowledge Sciences at the University of Malta . Nice group of students. Loving it!
Ann Laenen 