Exhibitions

Upcoming exhibition, May-June 2027

Il-kamra ta’ missieri (My father’s room)

The exhibition is inspired by the room that artist’s father used as an impromptu office, workshop and store. It is set out in a single room that has bare limestone walls and a traditional tiled floor. Its furnishings are spartan.

At first sight, the artworks appear to be the residue of life in Malta between 1943 and 1975. Closer inspection reveals hand-built objects of clay and finished to pass for the used and worn original. Each artwork is intentionally unlabelled; visitors learn that the objects are ceramic only from the catalogue. While they invite nostalgia, the meticulous labour that goes into making each piece provides the counterweight. The deliberate choice of the objects made, rendered as trompe l’oeil, together with marks of use and age, carry the meaning.

The exhibition questions how much of a person can be inferred from the artefacts they left and how the viewer’s personal background influences these inferences. It is also telling of Malta’s commercial and branding history which is of itself insightful.

The exhibition runs between May 20 and June 19, 2027, at Studio 87, Valletta, Malta. It is curated by Justine Balzan Demajo.