Epokaliss: The Life of Endings

Epokaliss

Epokaliss Culture October 18, 2017 at 12:53 pm
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Project Description

Epokaliss – The Life of Endings

Epokaliss is a digital art exhibition scheduled for launch on the 3rd of November. The exhibition is curated by Ramon Azzopardi Fiott, as a dedication to his late mother, Jacqueline Azzopardi.

Epokaliss traces the power of absent presences on our lives. It is a creative narrative that explores the themes of loss and how human nature copes with trauma – it is a commentary about how we navigate loss, touching on themes of religion, art, drugs and therapy, brought to life through 12 fine art portraits reflecting the artist’s own journey.

Date & Place of Exhibition

The launch date of the exhibition holds significance as a marker of Jacqueline’s life – her birth date, the 3rd and the first anniversary of her passing, the 4th of November.

The exhibition is being held at Palazzo Ħamsa Mill, in Ħal Balzan, and will run for two weeks.

Why Epokaliss?

When a life ends, another begins – the phantasmal life of absence. Epokaliss, a neologism for ‘the end of an epoch’, begins with loss, and ends with transformation.

What happens to the stories that end? And what happens to the stories tied to them? Where do they go – the futures that should have been, but never were?

Ramon made Epokaliss with a promise: To use the ghost of what isn’t to celebrate the beauty of what is. He took the pain of his mother’s absence to celebrate the beauty in his world, reflected in portraits inspired by people he met and architecture in Malta.

Crowdfunding & Rewards

To tell his story, we need you! We’re asking people and organisations who want to support local talent and the art scene in Malta to help us make this project a reality.

Crowdfunding breakdown

  • Lighting
  • Printing of portraits
  • Framing
  • Exhibition logistics

We appreciate all forms of contributions, so we wanted to make sure everyone will get something regardless of the amount donated.

Who are we?

We are a team of visual artists and writers who work together to create and tell stories by drawing from different art forms, including design, writing, film, and drag. Our mission is to create a space where artists can develop their identity, ideas and creativity, and we want to make the creation of Epokaliss our point of departure.

Our Biggest Supporters

We have a number of people to be thankful for, primarily Giovanna Hammet, who shares our love for Maltese history and architecture and agreed to let us use Palazzo Hamsa Mill – which she is restoring – for the exhibition. Giovanna wants to contribute to the art scene in Malta by providing spaces for artists to showcase their work.

Dr Edward Duca, publications Developer and Editor at University of Malta, and project manager at Science in the City. Edward will be the subject of one of the four portraits dedicated to the most important people in the curator’s journey after his mother’s death.

The list goes on, and in the interest of brevity, we will be posting about the different people involved in the creation of Epokaliss on our facebook page over the next two weeks.

Who was Jacqueline Azzopardi?

I want to first start by thanking Dr Andrew Azzopardi, Dean of the Faculty of Wellbeing at University, for his article about my mother. He painted a whimsical but truthful picture of who she was. My mother was known by many as an advocate for LGBT+ rights, minorities, and by youths, as a charming lecturer with hilarious antics.

Like any other healthy mother-son relationship, we didn’t always see eye to eye. Despite her readiness to take on new challenges, her drive to protect me clashed with my desire to travel and explore. I watched her overcome many challenges – her first battle with cancer, separation, and the loss of her mother. But, she was never more scared than when I came out to her. She struggled with change – perhaps due to the challenges she faced in her life – but she always turned it around. With time, my mother looked at what scared her – my difference – and made it her mission to nourish and safeguard it both in her academic and political career.

She might have had her flaws, but she always pushed through with sheer determination. She often told me “Jien, li nagħmel, għalik nagħmlu”. Now, I want to do same to her through Epokaliss. She dedicated her political career to make Malta a better place for people to thrive in, and I want to do the same through art.

Written By Ramon

Jacqueline passed away at the age of 48, on the 4th of November, 2016.

She was known for heading the Department of Criminology at The University of Malta, and for her continual efforts to safeguard and nourish minorities in Malta. She was an active member on the LGBT+ Consultative Council within the Ministry for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs, and Civil Liberties, and served the Nationalist Party on the minority list in Dingli (During which time she won Ġieħ Ħad-Dingli). Championed by the Nationalist Party (then lead by Simon Busuttil), she was encouraged to run for MP on the seventh district.

Thank you for lending us your time and support.

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Project FAQ

  • How will the rewards be delivered?
    Rewards will be available at the exhibition. Alternatively, we will send them by post after the Exhibition. 
  • When will the workshop be delivered?
    The workshop will be delivered on Friday, 10th at Palazzo Hamsa Mill, where the exhibition will be.
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