Text Catalogue (Andrew Darmanin & Ella Fleri Soler)

Andrew Darmanin and Ella Fleri Soler, founders of Text Catalogue, experiment across the boundaries of architecture and the allied arts through content writing, workshops, publications, and art installations. Whilst rooted in architecture, their work is often anthropological and sometimes community centred. Their inquiry frequently focuses on exploring processes of deterritorialisation, whereby people overturn and challenge the systems conditioning their way of dwelling. Both licensed architects, Andrew and Ella blend artistic practice, pedagogy, and research, presenting a dynamic and evolving body of work which challenges the notion that the architect’s remit begins and ends with a concern for building. 

Through Text Catalogue, Ella and Andrew continue to collaborate with various institutes and NGOs from their native Malta, including the University of Malta’s Faculty for the Built Environment, where Ella is a visiting lecturer within the Department of Architecture and Urban Design. They have exhibited work in leading local art spaces, such as at Spazzju Kreattiv and the Valletta Design Cluster, showcasing the site-specific installation Ix-Xuwa, recalling Valletta’s bakery culture, and Common Ground, which examines contested public spaces around Valletta’s parliament building.