Malta’s cultural public sphere and its interchange with national cultural policy

Abstract

This dissertation addresses the relationship between cultural policy and the cultural public sphere. Malta’s cultural policy shows it was successful in providing a concrete structure for cultural governance. However, whilst acknowledging the positive cultural and artistic development created over the past six years, this dissertation highlights the tendency to prioritise cultural practitioners over the public — therefore, the cultural recipient. The notion of critical debate is a recurring factor used for analysis to understand the relationship between the public and policy. In this regard, the dissertation sets out to define culture and to explore the Maltese public’s understanding of culture. It then analyses the socioeconomic arguments made regarding culture in terms of governance, and explores the impact that these have had on the public sphere and its receipt of cultural products. Informed by the National Cultural Policy Malta 2011, the Create 2020 Strategy (2015) and by international cultural policy trends, the dissertation finally presents six proposals for the future of cultural policy in Malta that is mindful of the role of the public sphere. Reference is made to the performing arts, owing to this dissertation’s submission in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies.