Artists' tribute to Italy

Two established artists have joined forces for an exhibition at the Istituto Italiano di cultura to pay tribute to Italy, which they both share strong ties with through their art.

Painter Luciano Micallef, who had studied art in Italy, and photographer Daniel Cilia, who resides in Florence, are using their respective mediums to acknowledge the Istituto's support of the arts in Malta over the years. The Istituto is acknowledging the success of two men who benefited from life-changing scholarships to Italy in the past.

Rivisitazioni, as the exhibition is called, was the brainchild of cultural institute director Dott. Anna Maria Di Marco, who approached the artists, offering them a free hand to create a series of works specifically for it.

It includes 16 paintings and 26 photographs, which reflect the artists' ongoing rapport with Italy and their ways of perceiving it.

Mr Cilia, for example, chose to focus on Florence, which he considers his second home since he changed his career path from nursing to art in 1988. He captured the city in an original manner on his digital camera in one morning. That was his challenge - and the result was 50 photographs that depict Florence, without really showing it.

The most popular sights in the city are photographed spontaneously and from a different angle. None of the shots were set up, he says. They zoom in on the details, which, although subtle, are still recognisable. Subjects range from a Gucci shop window to a stall selling pictures of the Pope, coincidentally next to postcards of The David's private parts and a communist flag.

"Normally, I am working on a project, such as a book, for a client, who is awaiting the result. This time, I was the client."

Mr Micallef, on the other hand, spent over three months painting churches in Italy in a series of works that mark a one-off departure from his trademark abstract style, which he has focused on for the past 20 years.

It would not have made sense to present abstract paintings, given the idea behind the exhibition, maintains Mr Micallef. So, he found a compromise, which has turned out to be another success. The architectural part of the painting is precise and detailed, but superimposed on an unrealistic background, with splashes of vibrant colour. "If you remove the subject, you have an abstract painting," he explains.

"I want to be consistent and known for something I have consistently promoted over the years," he says of the fact that he chose to "speak a different language" for Rivisitazioni.

The artists were pleasantly surprised at the positive response their works received, despite the fact that they do not depict local scenes. "I never expected such feedback for these works," says Mr Micallef, who has sold most of them. He has not had an exhibition outside his gallery since it opened in 1996, and is not the type to organise yearly ones, maintaining that being an artist is a responsibility and has to be done professionally.

"Art in Malta has been reduced to a simple social event, but professionally, it lacks immensely. Anyone who can put splashes on paper becomes an artist overnight." Mr Cilia's photos are not for sale due to the fact that printed digital photos do not last forever.

Rivisitazioni, at the institute in St George's Square, Valletta, is open until April 20.