How did this grant contribute to the realization of your project in regard to artistic exchange, local cultural development and/or the promotion of cultural diversity?

I wrote a draft of the project "Mapping the hope" when I was in Malta in 2011. I witnessed the situation of the refugees and immigrants for the first time.But since then so many things have changed and developed. Thanks to this grant, I could return to the island. This trip back was an eye opener and a deep realisation. During my stay I met a lot cultural players, with whom I decided to work together, in order to make my new project a community project.

How does exchange, networking and international contacts contribute to the development of your artistic and cultural project?

To not be stuck on an outsiders view of the site-specific projects I am working on, I have to try to experience the social and political circumstances as deep and real as possible in order to give my real but still unbiased view on things. A method that is crucially depended on international contacts as exchange and networking.

Can you elaborate on the learning and knowledge you have gained and shared throughout this experience?

Through the several meetings I was taking with people from many different aspects of the social life in Valletta I gained a wider knowledge about the history of Malta, the cultural dynamics and what effects them.

Please indicate a link to your current work (website/facebook page)

http://www.khaledbarakeh.com