Despite Piano objections, ‘Four Knights’ heading for approval

A bronze monument depicting four knights in full armour, which is being proposed at City Gate, looks set to be approved in spite of the contrary opinion of a heritage advisory body and of the Renzo Piano Workshop.

The favourable verdict was expressed by the Planning Directorate, which is advising the Malta Environment and Planning Authority to approve the monument. The directorate deems the monument as respecting “the contemporary architecture and character of the area”.

But the Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee, which serves as an advisory panel for the MEPA, has objected “to any addition of monuments to the site” that do not form part of the permit granted for the Piano project.

The bronze monument will be placed along the wall between the stairs just inside City Gate and the government housing block and will project 50 centimetres from the wall.  

The Superintendence for Cultural Heritage has not formally objected to the project though it pointed out that it should not impact on “the architectural values of the City Gate project”. It also insisted that the monument should be reversible.

The case officer insists that this condition is being respected because the monument will not be attached to the ground but will be “held down by gravity”.

Speaking to MaltaToday in September 2014, Antonio Belvedere of the Renzo Piano Building Workshop insisted that the entrance to Valletta should be kept pristine.

“It is not at all a matter of the style and aesthetics of the sculpture, even less a matter of cohesiveness with our design. It is just a matter of magnitude of the events,” Belvedere, who is a partner in the City Gate Project, added.

He believes that the entrance to Valletta already contains within it a strong enough ‘narrative’, which does not require further embellishment to achieve its impact.

Describing the entrance as leading to a “sequence of powerful experiences”, Belvedere said it marks the “commencement of the Valletta experience”.

“Cross the Ditch by walking on the re-exposed original bridge built by the Knights, cross and feel the fortifications in all its depth, once inside, stand on Republic Street, see both St James and St John’s Cavalier, observe and read the rational city structure… This is the commencement of the Valletta experience. A great story is already sculpted in this experience made out of stone.”

Noting that Valletta is already “full of places capable of telling thousands of stories”, Belvedere suggested that an alternative place could be found for this – or any other – sculpture in the city, since ideally the entrance should be kept as a place “to be shared, not to be occupied by this or that sculpture”.