Photographer Hans Neumann began working on his series of photo essays, ENSAYO, back in 2017. Now in its third volume, the photographer chose Malta as the setting for the latest instalment, following the chance discovery of local 20-year-old Martina Farrugia’s Instagram page, he tells GARAGE. 

It was through her that he built a network of young, Maltese creatives that he would go on to collaborate with for MALTA. “I thought it was interesting to be meeting all of these beautiful and interesting people through this tool of globalization in a world that has become hypocritical and xenophobic,” he says, going on to explain his interest in exploring their views on migration and identity.

The dreamy images captured by the photographer are the result of four days of “hanging out” with the local teens – a result which, in Hans’ own words, serves as an interesting “portrait of Malta and it’s youth”.

And the island, as well as its people, seems to have made a lasting impression on the photographer, ensuring, perhaps, that this won’t be his final visit. “There are so many stories I would like to tell. I feel I need to go back again and explore them one by one. This time around we just scratched the surface,” the photographer continues, in his interview with GARAGE.

We can’t wait to see what’s next!