‘Innovation requires imagination’: Scientists push back against culture minister

Creativity is as fundamental to science as it is to the arts, the Malta Chamber of Scientists (MCS) insisted as it distanced itself from Culture Minister Malcolm Paul Agius Galea’s controversial remarks on artistic expression.

On Tuesday, a leaked audio recording emerged in which Agius Galea was heard describing his first four months as culture minister as "traumatic," while questioning artists' reliance on public funding and arguing that creativity should operate within certain "norms."

Speaking at the Festival of Ideas, the minister drew comparisons between his former profession as a doctor and his new role overseeing the cultural sector, explaining that his medical training had taught him to regard creativity as "dangerous."

He also claimed that artists believed they were "God's gift to the world," prompting widespread criticism from creatives in Malta and Gozo.

MCS expresses concern over Agius Galea’s comments

The MCS expressed concern over the minister’s remarks in a statement issued on Tuesday, explaining that science and creativity are inseparable, just as creativity is fundamental to the arts.

“Creativity is not something that can be prescribed, measured against a fixed norm, or confined to what is already known,” it said. “It is the ability to imagine what does not yet exist, question what is taken for granted, and explore possibilities beyond established boundaries.”

The chamber said artistic expression, like scientific inquiry, must be allowed to challenge assumptions, provoke discussion, explore uncomfortable questions, and encourage audiences to think critically.

Drawing parallels between the arts and sciences, it pointed out that innovation requires imagination, research requires curiosity, and progress requires the freedom to question.

Without these qualities, the MCS warned, Malta risks becoming a society that simply reproduces existing knowledge rather than creating something new.

While acknowledging that creativity is not exempt from responsibility, ethics or accountability, the chamber insisted that responsibility should not become a justification for restricting expression or discouraging ideas that challenge the status quo.

‘Scientific progress has always relied on people who question authority’

Scientific progress has never depended solely on following established norms, the MCS said, noting that many discoveries that transformed people's understanding of the world began with questions that challenged what was considered normal, possible, or even acceptable.

As an example, the chamber recalled the 1847 discovery that hand disinfection reduced deaths from puerperal fever, a finding that was rejected by the medical establishment at the time.

The MCS argued that scientific progress has always relied on people daring to challenge accepted theories, question authority, test unconventional ideas, and approach familiar problems from entirely different perspectives.

A society afraid of unconventional ideas, it warned, risks losing the discoveries, expressions, and innovations that drive progress.

Government cannot encourage young people to innovate while calling creativity ‘dangerous’

Turning to the minister’s criticism of artists seeking government funding, the MCS insisted that public investment in the arts and sciences should not be measured solely through ticket sales or immediate commercial success.

Instead, it described such funding as an investment in society’s intellectual, cultural, and social development, arguing that the role of public institutions is not to define the limits of creativity but to create the conditions in which it can flourish.

“Not every valuable scientific discovery produces an instantaneous commercial return. Not every meaningful artistic experience fills a theatre,” the MCS said.

“Their value extends beyond immediate financial gains, enriching communities, broadening perspectives, nurturing critical thinking, and contributing to a more informed and imaginative society.”

The chamber argued that Malta cannot aspire to become a centre of research, innovation, and creativity while placing limits on the very qualities that allow these fields to thrive.

At the same time, it said government cannot encourage young people to think critically, innovate and become the researchers, artists, and problem-solvers of tomorrow while simultaneously suggesting that creativity becomes dangerous when it moves beyond accepted norms.

If Malta truly wishes to foster such a culture, the MCS argued, it must support artists, researchers, cultural organisations and creative communities.

This includes protecting freedom of expression, encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration, and ensuring that public funding decisions are based on merit and long-term value rather than conformity or commercial return.

Science and arts are not separate enterprises

The MCS explained that, since 2012, it has co-led Science in the City, Malta’s national Science and Arts Festival, precisely because science and the arts are not separate enterprises.

That work, it said, challenges a long-standing prejudice that scientists look down on artists and regard creative practice as a lesser form of thinking. On the other hand, the chamber warned that remarks such as those made by the minister "risk reinforcing that prejudice."

"Such beliefs are not the view of the general scientific community, and indeed the MCS is of the opinion that science and art are complementary," it concluded.