Pen and ink gouaches in Valletta exhibition

An exhibition of pen and ink gouaches by artist Kenneth Zammit Tabona, entitled An Inner World is being held in the courtyard of The Manoel Theatre, Valletta.

Mr Zammit Tabona told The Times that the focus is on the people who live in these semi-portraits. "They are not doing anything much most of the time apart from being the focal point of a specific setting. The interiors are subtly Maltese with the occasional Maltese clock tal-Lira or a silver lampier in evidence; as in the Silver Tea Service with its silver cow creamer!

"Landscapes and streetscapes are there too; the landscapes in the paintings that hang on the wall and the streetscapes are just out of the window. The collection depicts a dolce far niente way of life that is becoming more and more elusive in this age of speed and immediacy.

"The state of languor achieved by the 'sitters' is one we all would wish to be in ourselves; an idyllic, carefree existence which exists solely in our wildest dreams," Mr Zammit Tabona said.

"There are also the 'artists at work' pictures which is about as strenuous as the activity in a painting can get; The Queen of the High C's straining to reach her top notes while holding on to an elaborate chimney piece, wearing a Callas-esque parure of emeralds and diamonds, and the Goldberg Variations which depict a well-preserved society pianist and her page turner," he added.