By Ema Lynnx
From Malta to Venice, Artivism Awards represents an artistic odyssey in service of life. On Malta's Grand Harbour, from June 5 to 28, 2026, aboard the KyalamiInternational artists, scientists, underwater heritage conservators and environmental advocates will share a common destination: Venice.
But the real journey lies elsewhere. It lies in the growing awareness that the ocean, long considered an inexhaustible expanse, has become one of the most fragile ecosystems on the planet. It is from this conviction that the fourth edition of the Artivism Awards. Under the theme “ Ocean Preservation Awareness ", the event transforms contemporary art into an instrument for raising awareness, reflection and concrete action in favor of the marine world.
Art as an act of responsibility
Founded in 2020 by the French artist Alexandra Mas and the studio MAS TASSINIThe Artivism Awards have established themselves as one of the most unique international platforms, at the crossroads of contemporary art and social engagement.
Since their inception in Venice, the Awards have recognized artists whose work directly addresses the major tensions of our time: the environment, social justice, collective memory, and human responsibility. Far removed from traditional activist aesthetics, they favor an approach where creation becomes a vehicle for dialogue and transformation.
The first edition made a lasting impression with "No Plastic," an artistic intervention in St. Mark's Square to raise awareness about ocean pollution. Six years later, this foundational commitment finds a natural continuation with an edition entirely dedicated to the sea.
An expedition before the exhibition
The originality of the Artivism Awards IV lies in their starting point: the exhibition begins well before the official opening in Venice.
For ten days, the participants embark on board the Kyalami, a fast cruising yacht made entirely of carbon fiber and designed by the renowned naval architect German FrersFrom Malta to the Venetian lagoon, the ship becomes a veritable floating laboratory where scientific observation, photography, artistic reflection and the discovery of Mediterranean heritage come together.
The voyage follows the historic coasts of the Mediterranean, including a stopover in Dubrovnik. On board, the days alternate between discussions with oceanographers, photography workshops, celestial navigation, gastronomy inspired by the regions traversed, and silent contemplation of the open sea.
Far from being a simple journey, this crossing constitutes the first artistic gesture of the exhibition.
When science and creation sail together
At the heart of this adventure lies a simple idea: art and science share the same ability to reveal what remains invisible.
Among the key figures of the expedition is Professor Alan Deidun, oceanographer, Malta's ocean ambassador and a recognized specialist on the Mediterranean. For several decades, he has studied the impact of human activities on marine ecosystems, species migrations linked to global warming and the effects of light pollution on coastal biodiversity.
On board the Kyalami, his interventions take the form of informal conversations where the seascape becomes a living learning ground. Every current, every variation of light, every movement of the surface tells a scientific story that the artists then translate into their works.
Alexandra Mas, art as an awakening of consciousness
Initiator of the Artivism Awards, Alexandra Mas occupies a central place in this edition.
A multidisciplinary artist, she has been developing a reflection on the relationship between humankind and its environment for many years. Through engraving, performance, sculpture, and video, her work explores the invisible mechanisms that connect our societies to natural balances.
For Artivism Awards IV, she presents Mystic WatersAn immersive installation composed of a short film and a series of suspended drawings. The visitor traverses an organic universe evoking coral reefs before being confronted with a hypnotic image where the beauty of the ocean dialogues with the threats that weigh upon it.
The work rejects any didactic demonstration. It prefers to create a feeling of unsettling fascination where contemplation becomes awareness.
Diana von Hohenthal und Bergen, the curatorial vision
The international curator is in charge of the artistic direction of this fourth edition. Diana von Hohenthal and Bergen orchestrates a unique dialogue between art, research and environmental action.
Since the second edition of the Artivism Awards, she has developed a curatorial approach based on the intersection of disciplines. For Venice 2026, she envisions a journey structured in three chapters: scientific, activist, and contemplative. This structure allows her to address the ocean issue from different angles without ever simplifying its complexity. The artworks become complementary perspectives on the same subject: the fragility of life.
Frits Cornelis Thieme, the patron of the seafaring
Behind this ambitious adventure lies also Frits Cornelis ThiemeAs a collector, patron, and producer of the project, he plays a vital role in the event's success. His support extends far beyond traditional financial contributions.
As a partner in the maritime expedition, co-designer of the exhibition, and promoter of dialogue between artists and scientists, he champions a contemporary vision of cultural patronage where commitment is measured as much by the impact generated as by the support provided to artistic creation. Under his leadership, Kyalami has become a space for encounters where new forms of cooperation between contemporary art and environmental conservation are emerging.
Ocean artists
The exhibition brings together nine international artists whose works explore the multiple dimensions of the relationship between man and the sea.
The Maltese photographer Kurt Arrigo, ambassador of the One Ocean Foundation, presents The Blue Thread, a series of stunning underwater images that reveal the fragile beauty of marine ecosystems. His work now transcends the realm of photography to become a true international platform for raising awareness about ocean conservation.
Joanna Adams unveils a new version of its visionary project The Future is WildDeveloped with scientists from Stanford and the Natural History Museum in London, among others, she uses drawings and film to imagine the life forms that could emerge in the oceans of the future.
The Norwegian artist Lill MR Hansen Meanwhile, it explores the extreme conditions of underwater work through its installation. Rigid Chamberinspired by the saturation divers used during oil exploitation in the North Sea.
Dodi Reifenberg continues its fight against plastic pollution with Deep, a work created from thousands of fragments of plastic bags collected from the environment. From a distance, the image appears harmonious; up close, it brutally reveals the material from which it is composed.
The meditative photographs of Christopher Lavenair, the translucent sculptures of Marcy Axelrod, the mythological landscapes of Vera van Leeuwen and the environmental performance of Sarah Olson complete this artistic journey through the marine world.
Venice, capital of art and climate sentinel
Arriving in Venice has a special symbolic dimension. Participants enter the lagoon city by sea, like travelers of past centuries, before landing at Sant'Elena, just a few minutes from the Biennale.
The event takes place in parallel with the Venice Climate Week which brings together researchers, policymakers, artists and institutions around the challenges of the ecological transition. In this context, the Artivism Awards appear as one of the most relevant cultural events of the Venetian season.
Venice thus becomes the scene of an encounter between heritage, contemporary creation and environmental reflection.
When collecting becomes an act of preservation
The Artivism Awards IV are not limited to raising awareness. The exhibition is part of a concrete effort to support marine research. All proceeds from the sale of Kurt Arrigo's works are donated to the One Ocean Foundation to fund seagrass restoration programs, the true lungs of the Mediterranean.
The other participating artists dedicate 25% of their artwork sales to research programs conducted in collaboration with theUnderwater Cultural Heritage Unit de Heritage MaltaThus, each acquisition becomes an act of preservation.
A new definition of politically engaged art
As environmental warnings multiply, the Artivism Awards offer a different approach. Rather than multiplying alarmist pronouncements, they choose experience. Rather than demonstration, they prioritize emotion. Rather than guilt-tripping, they invite contemplation.
Between the waters of Malta and the quays of Venice, this fourth edition demonstrates that art may not be able to clean the oceans, but it still possesses that rare power: the power to permanently transform our view of the world. And sometimes, it is precisely there that the greatest changes begin.
