Awarded to the most outstanding overall contribution
Commissioner: Arts Council Malta
URNA Creative Team: Andrew Borg Wirth, Anthony Bonnici, Matthew Attard Navarro, Thomas Mifsud, Anne Immelé, Stephanie Sant, Tanil Raif
International Cultural Relations Directorate Team at Arts Council Malta: Annabelle Stivala, Executive Head of the Directorate; Dr Romina Delia, Head of International Cultural Relations; Gracelynn Attard Support Executive International Cultural Relations; Frederick Testa, Audio Visual Director; and Dr Frank Psaila and Terence Cutajar (PR & Marketing International Projects)
https://www.urnaproject.com | @urna.project
Arts Council Malta are delighted to announce ‘URNA’, by a collaborative creative team including Andrew Borg Wirth, Anthony Bonnici, Matthew Attard Navarro, Thomas Mifsud, Anne Immelé, Stephanie Sant and Tanil Raif has won the 2025 London Design Biennale Medal, awarded to the most outstanding overall contribution.
Perfectly exemplifying and merging design innovation and creativity, together with a more deeply spiritual enquiry, ‘URNA’ is an innovative project speculating on a radical future for the adoption of cremation in Malta. ‘URNA’ imagines a new ritual for handling human remains, envisioning it as a culturally significant process.
Conceived by a creative team of architects, designers, curators, and art directors, ‘URNA’ is a large-scale installation, comprising at its centre a monumental sphere, crafted from reconstituted limestone. The sculptural installation is the nucleus for a series of other important components of the project, including a film, which speculates on the possible future of rituals around URNA, and a book featuring visual and written research. Drawing on Malta’s historical ties to limestone and its cultural signifi cance, the work symbolises the intersection of heritage, sustainability, and transformation.
The collaborative team behind URNA, comprising Andrew Borg Wirth, Anthony Bonnici, Thomas Mifsud, Matthew Attard Navarro, Anne Immelé, Stephanie Sant and Tanil Raif say: “URNA is from Malta but it is for the world. It has global, universal ambitions. This win affi rms the quiet power of what we set out to do with URNA—to create a space where death, memory, and material are held with sensitivity, courage, and imagination“
Owen Bonnici, Minister for Culture, Lands and Local Government, describes URNA as bold, daring and provocative and said that it is precisely what art should be all about: challenging the status quo.
Mr Albert Marshall, Executive Chairman at Arts Council Malta congratulated the team for their hard work, dedication and well earned award. This comes as a lovely celebration for Arts Council Malta’s 10th anniversary. URNA has a strong Maltese element—it uses the local landscape and innovative material technologies in reconstituted limestone, Malta’s unique natural resource, making URNA an ecologically sustainable project.
URNA is Malta’s offi cial entry for the London Design Biennale 2025. The project is the result of a collaborative effort between Arts Council Malta, Maltese creatives, and leading international institutions.
Arts Council Malta, under the auspices of the Ministry for Culture, Lands and Local Government, led by Minister Dr Owen Bonnici, is the Commissioner of the Malta Pavilion at the London Design Biennale.
https://www.artscouncilmalta.org
Artists’ Statement:
URNA is context-derived; imagined to be out of limestone and positioned within disused Maltese quarries. In its universality, however, the concept behind URNA will be able to adapt to different cultures, landscapes and materials so that one can imagine completely different rituals, in different places, built on the same foundation. “Design,” said curator Andrew Borg Wirth, “needs to deliver internal desires within external forces which is the underpinning thought behind the theme chosen for this year’s Biennale by Artistic Director Samuel Ross — Surface Reflections.”
The project has not only engaged within the exhibition’s platform, but is also creating a public programme which has already held a workshop and lecture series at the University of Malta. More initiatives alongside different institutions will continue to take place throughout the project’s timeline.
For the project, the team is supported by main sponsor Halmann Vella, through the use of a new reconstituted stone material using limestone dust from Malta. In this way the team is bridging contemporary technological advancement from Malta, with urgent political and cultural themes. The team will be showcasing research into limestone landscapes and places of burial from across the Mediterranean.
Commissioner Statement:
The London Design Biennale is an international exhibition featuring world leading design, innovation and creativity from countries across the globe. It gives an excellent platform to Maltese architects and designers to showcase their creativity globally whilst connected with designers from across the world.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
For international media enquiries, please contact: Alex Finch and Robyn Deane at Margaret: alex@margaretlondon.com / robyn@margaretlondon.com.
For Maltese media enquiries please contact: maria-angela.vassallo.2@artscouncil.mt.
PRESS ACCREDITATION
For access to the press preview and to visit the London Design Biennale, you must be officially accredited via the LDB media accreditation process.
COMMISSIONER
Arts Council Malta
THE TEAM
Curation
Andrew Borg Wirth, Curator
Design
Anthony Bonnici, Architect
Thomas Mifsud, Architect
Tanil Raif, Architect
Communication & Image
Matthew Attard Navarro, Art Director
Anne Imele, Photographer
Stephanie Sant, Filmmaker
Videography
Sam Chetcuti
ARTS COUNCIL MALTA
Arts Council Malta is the national agency of Malta for development and investment in the cultural and creative sectors. Its principal task is to fund, support and promote Malta’s Cultural and Creative sectors locally and internationally. The International Cultural Relations Directorate within Arts Council Malta is responsible for project leading Malta’s participation at several Art Biennales around the world, including Malta’s participation at the Venice Art Biennale, at the Gwangju Art Biennale and at the London Design Biennale.
The Evaluators, on behalf of Arts Council Malta for the selection of the Malta Pavilion at the London Design Biennale 2025 were:
Angela Bourderye-Munoz, cultural diplomacy expert, currently serving as the External Relations and Events Manager at London Design Biennale since 2022.
Adrian Mamo, architect and current artistic director of Teatru Manoel, Malta’s national theatre.
Andre Pizzuto, President of the Council of the Maltese Chamber of Architects & Civil Engineers.
The evaluation session was moderated by Dr Romina Delia, Head of International Cultural Relations at Arts Council Malta.
SUPPORTERS
Arts Council Malta (Commissioner), Halmann Vella, Malta Tourism Authority, University Of Malta, Harvard Graduate School of Design*, Malta Enterprise, Gasan Foundation, Visit Malta, KM Malta Airlines, Embassy of France in Malta.
THE LONDON DESIGN BIENNALE
Established in 2016 by Sir John Sorrell CBE and Ben Evans CBE, London Design Biennale promotes international collaboration and the global role of design. Since its inception the Biennale welcomes the world’s most exciting and ambitious designers, innovators and cultural bodies to the capital. The fi fth London Design Biennale will take place from 5-29 June 2025. Dr Samuel Ross MBE was announced as the artistic director of the London Design Biennale 2025 and the theme will be ‘Surface Refl ections’, exploring how ideas are shaped equally by internal experiences and external infl uences Taking over the entirety of Somerset House, including the Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court and River Terrace, participants from across the globe will be invited to imagine and enact new forms of international cooperation and participation including with each other through the medium of design. London Design Biennale’s International Advisory Committee and Jury includes: Paola Antonelli, Rashid and Ahmed bin Shabib, Victoria Broackes, Ben Evans CBE, Dylan Jones OBE, Suhair Khan, Prof. Jeremy Myerson, Charlene Prempeh, Tosin Oshinowo, Jonathan Reekie CBE, Dr Christopher Turner, Ana Yang.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Art Council Malta – @artscouncilmalta
Andrew Borg Wirth, Curator – @aborgwirth
Anthony Bonnici, Architect – @anthony__bonnici + @ebejerbonnici
Thomas Mifsud, Architect – @tmsmifsud + @ebejerbonnici
Matthew Attard Navarro, Art Director – @attardnavarro + @ancc.studio
Stephanie Sant, Filmmaker – @stephaniesaint
Anne Imele, Photographer – @anneimmele
Tanil Raif, Architect – @tanilraif Jean Vella – @jvel117 + @halmann_vella
