Students' Perspective of the MCAST Institute for Creative Arts

I’ve been attending the MCAST Institute for Creative Arts for the last four years, and now I know the system of the college very well and in some ways, it improved. Although, there are still several issues that didn’t improve or became even worse.

Starting off by the issue of the lack of hygiene around the school. First of all, I have to say that I appreciate the cleaners team of the school for their hard work. On the other hand, my concern is the lack of rubbish bins around the college, also most students don’t seem to respect the environment and keep it clean. So, I think that introducing some strict policy would improve the school’s hygiene. Another thing is also the hygiene in the toilets which most of the time aren’t very well kept mostly because of the students' bad behaviour. Another thing that really bothers me (and for some people is taken for granted) is that students smoke within the school premises even though it is prohibited and I suggest that the administration should reinforce the rules.

Secondly, another thing that annoys me is that the library isn’t open all time and during free hours students need somewhere to work. Although the library is not large enough and the number of students that can stay there is limited. Another thing is that there’re too many students for such small space and I feel that there should be a solution. It is a good thing for Mcast for having increased the number of students, but the lack of space within the institute make it difficult to learn in. 

There are other problems regarding maintenance which haven’t been done since a long time. Namely air conditions not working and chairs broken in lecture rooms are one of the main things I get frustrated most about, which leads to lack of health and safety towards the students which it is ironic for an Institute that is supposed to teach students about it. In addition, I always hope that more funds will be invested in college for the comfort of the students and lecturers.

On a positive note, I must say that most of the lecturers are always willing to help students and do their job very well with such dedication, sometimes they also spend extra time beyond their allocated work hours, which I truly respect and appreciate. 

Another thing that I like is the location of the school and the greenery of the surroundings which might serve as a good inspiration for students’ projects.

Architecture & Spatial Design Controversies

Controversy is a way of showing disagreement to a choice or an argument. It can be a disagreement of a group of people who are expressing their opinion about the subject being discussed. (Merriam Webster, n.d) 

Below I listed a number of controversies in spatial design in Malta and also globally.

Local

The New Maltese Parliament

The New Maltese Parliament has been controversial since its announcement. Most of the controversy is political and also about its design. Some argues that it is an eyesore compared to other Valletta’s buildings. Others argue that they like the design as it is showing improvement and innovation in the Maltese architecture. Either way the debate is endless.

Royal opera house

The Royal Opera House has been a debate for decades on what should happen to it in the future. But recently the controversy has been heated, due to the new design it has been done, which is to serve as an outdoor concert area for public events/performances. Some people argue that it should be built again and others say it should have stayed as it was, demolished by war.

The Mriehel Towers

The proposed high rise of the towers in Mriehel has arisen some debates, most of them being political and also for causing an eyesore to the Maltese skyline.

Globally

Antilla Residential Tower

This tower have been into a middle of a controversy because of the fact that it is a residence for only one family (the owner is a billionaire) which never used it and that it was built into a middle class town where it makes them feel insulted.

The Walkie Talkie

The design and form of this tower have created a number of problems towards the nearby residents. Such as melting cars, bicycles, etc. because of the strong sun reflections from the reflected glass it has. It also creates lots of wind gulfs because of the curvatures it has.   

The Portland Building

The structure was built on a low budget and it is causing technical building faults and it’s very expensive to repair. Local people’s concern is that if demolished of reinvested, lots of jobs will be lost and also the cost to be repaired will be very high. There are other issues about the building that is causing controversy.

Other controversial buildings are:

• The Eiffel Tower (Paris, France),
• Guggenheim Museum (New York),
• Al Wakrah Stadium (Doha, Qatar),
• Sagrada Familia (Barcelona, Spain),
• London Garden Bridge, (Thomas Heatherwick),
• The Lens (St. Petersburg Pier). 

References:

Merriam-Webster, 2016. Definition of Controversy. [online] Available at: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/controversy. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Byrnes, M, 2014. Should Portland Save a Building It Really, Really Hates?. City Lab.[online] Available at: http://www.citylab.com/design/2014/01/should-portland-save-building-it-really-really-hates/8050/. [Accessed 22 October 2016].
Winston, A, 2014. Postmodernist Portland Building will be saved, says Graves. Dezeen. [online] Available at: http://www.dezeen.com/2014/12/29/iconic-postmodern-portland-building-saved-architect-michael-graves/. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Frearson, A, 2015. Walkie Talkie blamed for powerful downdraught on London streets. Dezeen. [online] Available at: http://www.dezeen.com/2015/07/23/walkie-talkie-skyscraper-rafael-vinoly-blamed-powerful-downdraught-london/. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Hamill, J, 2015. Architect behind London's controversial Walkie Talkie building plans amazing rooftop park the size of 23 football pitches. Mirror. [online] Available at: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/technology-science/technology/architect-behind-londons-controversial-walkie-6458876. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

MacLeod, F, 2014. The 9 Most Controversial Buildings of All Time. ArchDaily. [online] Available at: http://www.archdaily.com/573271/the-9-most-controversial-buildings-of-all-time. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Longbottom, W, 2011. World's most expensive house Antilia in Mumbai lies abandoned. Daily mail news.[online] Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2053231/Worlds-expensive-house-Antilia-Mumbai-lies-abandoned.html. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Quirk, V, 2012. Despite Controversy, Michael Maltzan Architecture's "Lens" Will Go On. Archdaily. [online] Available at: http://www.archdaily.com/304544/despite-controversy-michael-maltzan-architectures-lens-will-go-on. [Accessed 22 October 2016].

Week 2 - Time Managment

During my past years at Mcast, I have to say that I learned a lot from experiences which made me become a more mature person. First of all I learned how to be an independent individual and how to deal with different situations.

As we all know all assignments have deadlines and during the first year at Mcast, I used to take them for granted and keep everything for the last minute. Which will then create a lot of pressure and the work will not be done up to standards. Although I have to mention that I never missed a deadline, I still find it difficult to keep up a good time management.

It is an issue where time doesn’t wait for anyone as they say. Last year I was also a bit tight by time during deadlines, however this year is going to be more intense which requires a lot of work in small amount of time. So reflecting on the past, I think that I am prepared to be more organized and motivated and will try to do my best not to fall behind this year. This also made me realise how much time is short not only for assignments but for my own personal life.

Reflecting on what I said, deadlines are there not to scare us as students but to prepare and train us for the future which I know that in my future career they’ll be very important. 

Week 1 - Returning Back To College

During the first week at college, I have to say that I noticed a number of issues that I have to criticise. My assumptions before coming back to school were that most of the things will be better than we left them last year. I feel a bit odd to start off the year by complaining, but as everyone else noticed, there wasn't much change in the school system and its premises. 

Firstly when we first had our first lecture in Art Studio 1, we were all annoyed by the fact that there is no air-conditions or any fans in the room which of course during this time of the year we are experiencing high temperatures that are not acceptable. To make it worse the only windows available for the studio were blocked by gypsum panels (which were used for the past exhibition) which make the room very hot and also obstruct the only natural light or ventilation the room has. Another thing to mention is that, the same classroom (Art Studio 1) has most of the chairs broken or not functioning well, which might be dangerous to the students who use them. 

However that is not the only room that doesn't have any air-conditions or fans, but there are several rooms around the institute with the same problem. Some classrooms does have air-conditions but do not function well.  What I was expecting is that the institute could at least afford to buy some fans rather than installing new air-conditions, which I know that they are expensive.

Another thing that I noticed is that a set of speakers were not functioning in another classroom, where a lecturer needed to use it due to showing us few clips as part of his presentation, but couldn't do so because there is no wires or anything to make it work. I really think that such simple things are very important to students, who need to study in a comfortable ambient. 

There are more issues in this institute that needs to be addressed better. I would suggest better planning, more organization and maybe more funds should be invested in the institute’s premises for the comfort of whoever make use of it.