ARCHITECTURE Outdoor furniture questioning Malta’s developments

Design /Heritage / Architecture

November - December 2021

. SORGI

An outdoor furniture collection by Anna Horvath that questions Malta’s developments and their impact on the environment.

. The name of the project, SORGI, is derived from the Maltese verb ‘Sorga’, which means an anchoring ship or a person about to feel tired and sitting down. Curiously, the term was borrowed from the Italian verb that means the exact opposite, to arise. In this context, SORGI is intended as an invitation to sit down, literally, and observe the ever-changing Maltese built landscape from a different perspective. SORGI is an ongoing research project about opportunities for circularity in Malta, whose first outcome is an outdoor furniture collection for public spaces, highly critical of the booming construction industry. Six benches inspired by six buildings affected by the local construction frenzy will stand both as a memento of today’s choices and a suggestion for tomorrow’s actions. All pieces are in fact made of recycled construction waste, mainly limestone, encouraging people to question the island’s developments and their impact on the environment, from a social and historical perspective too. Several materials were considered and tested, including fragments of glass, recycled concrete and marble offcuts: all valuable resources currently being dumped in landfill sites, which are at their full capacity already. Local suppliers of marble and glass offered their off-cuts, while a number of individuals proposed construction waste from their private projects. Limestone was eventually chosen for several pieces because of its large availability, as most of the structures being demolished are made of this local stone, and for its structural and aesthetic qualities.

. The choice of materials was also greatly informed by the buildings inspiring the collection. The prototyping and production phases involved collaborations with . local craftsman and focused on utilising traditional production methods and local resources, of natural origins whenever possible – natural pigments, for example, were tested as a way to add colour and to create extraordinary textures enhancing the ‘uniqueness’ of each bench. Every piece tells the story of the building that inspired it and, through an interactive label, invites the user to delve into an online database of information about Maltese architectures that were (or will be) swept away by the construction frenzy: Ta’ Rita (Ghar Lapsi), Roxy Cinema (Birkirkara), Sun City Palais (Marsaskala), Marsa seafront, Twin 19th Century houses (Spinola Bay), Dolores (Zejtun). With structurally simple solutions and site-specific designs, SORGI turns construction waste into interactive outdoor furniture for Maltese public spaces, providing practical solutions for the alternative use of the sheer amount of discarded materials that keeps accumulating on the island while promoting circularity and raising awareness on environmental issues within a larger audience.

. SORGI was exhibited at The Phoenicia Hotel in Floriana, Malta, before being introduced to public spaces. The project is supported by the Malta Arts Fund. For more information visit Anna Horvath’s website: ahaobjects.com