An art installation inspired by Mdina’s distinctive doorknockers will feature in an exhibition linked to the America 250 celebrations and the Cleveland Film Festival’s 50th anniversary.
Polyphony is a project by Maltese artist and architect Ivan Coleiro and German artist and filmmaker Jens Klein.
The installation reimagines traditional Maltese doorknockers, including figures such as Neptune, a lion and a dolphin, as part of a large-scale installation piece, each of the six doorknockers around nine metres high, accompanied by sounds recorded in Mdina.
Each doorknocker is keyed to a mobile phone gesture; when audience members perform the gesture, it activates the doorknocker and generates a unique sound composition.
The work explores themes of cultural identity and integration through both sound and aesthetics.
Renders of the installation Photo: Ivan Coleiro“We are using the doorknockers as a method of inclusion. Their different sounds represent multicultural representation,” Coleiro said. “Malta is a melting pot ultimately. It isn’t just a luzzu or these typical motifs, Malta is all the cultures that have made it.”
Coleiro explained that the opportunity to present the installation internationally arose through Klein’s involvement in preparations for the American commemoration, celebrating 250 years of the United States of America, as well as the Cleveland Film Festival’s 50th anniversary.
The artists said they aimed to portray Malta as they perceive it – a country shaped by deep historical roots and diverse cultural influences.
Another render“I was once told: We sign contracts like the British, we do work like the Arabs and get paid like the Sicilians,” Coleiro smiled.
The collaboration itself, bringing together two artists from different cultural backgrounds and disciplines, reflects the project’s emphasis on inclusion. Coleiro noted that choosing to highlight these themes in the United States was deliberate.
“This exhibition is not a protest but a gentle reminder of the beauty and importance of cultural inclusion.”
He added that history repeatedly shows the consequences of division and cleansing, yet such approaches are still used for political gain.
“Any form of segregation or ethnic cleansing is a biological and logistical mistake.”
The installation will be exhibited simultaneously in Malta and in Cleveland, Ohio, on Wednesday; however, they will experience the installation differently. The artists hope audiences in both locations will engage directly with the work, particularly at a time when physical interaction is increasingly being overshadowed by digital experiences.
The installation reimagines traditional Maltese doorknockers, including figures such as a dolphin.Visitors will be able to interact with the installation through their phones, generating different sounds by moving their devices in specific ways.
“It is like they will get to compose their own piece with the knockers with their phones,” Coleiro said.
The doorknockers have been meticulously recreated using hundreds of photographs through a process of photogrammetry.
Artificial intelligence was used only to stitch the images together and prepare them for animation.
“People are tired of AI, so why give it to them?” Coleiro asked.
The project is funded by Arts Council Malta and Ohio-based Schoolyard Studio.
This render features Neptune.