Ceramist or sculptor? Art or craft? I wonder.
Ceramic works were once considered from a purely functional perspective. But the functionality of a ceramic piece grows more and more remote, whereas its aesthetic properties and possibilities are being increasingly heightened and explored.
Paul Haber fits the bill of both ceramist and sculptor, with the addition of a third description – visual artist. Thus, there can be no doubt – his work is no craft.
Catching up with Mr Haber a few days after the inauguration of his exhibition at the Bank of Valletta’s head office in Sta Venera, he explained how he hadn’t been in any rush to have a retrospective show. Nevertheless, he humbly confessed to having been “surprised” and “honoured” on receiving the call from the bank inviting him to be the next artist in line whose work would be duly commemorated and recognised.
Now that the hurdle of the exhibition’s organisation and subsequent inauguration is over, Mr Haber explains how “it is such a personal satisfaction to see so many of my works brought together under one roof”. Out of the 60 plus works on show, a fair number belong to the artist’s personal collection. Others, however, come from private collections – two in particular having been shipped over from New York for the sake of retrospective’s continuity and chronology.
Mr Haber is largely considered to be one of Malta’s foremost ceramists, yet he was originally trained in the art of sculpture and modelling at the Malta Government School of Art. His “formal” training in sculpture, helped him gain a sensitivity of form and colour which was easily translated when the time came to create ceramic works. Not until the age of 19 did Mr Haber discover the beauty of ceramics – creating his first fired piece in 1961, which is also exhibited in this retrospective.
The training he initially received in Malta was later supplemented by the course he followed at the Camberwell College of Art and the scholarships he was awarded to follow courses at the Liceo Artistico di Roma and the Accademia di Belle Arti Pietro Vanucci in Perugia. Later still, he was awarded a four-year scholarship to specialise in ceramics at the Hornsey College of Art in London. He was consequently accepted at The Central College of Art also in London (known today as Central St Martins).
His work is almost completely abstract, even titles are generally done away with: “Who am I to impose or guide the viewer to think on my lines?” he questions; his quiet, inner passion revealing itself gradually, in small, short spurts. He explains that, although his work might be strictly abstract, “I still do classical and figurative pieces, but they are for personal purposes”, not to be shown in exhibitions. In fact, it was only in his very first one-man show in 1972 that he showed figurative work. And besides the pieces included in this retrospective, for the sake of cohesion and continuity, he doesn’t intend exhibiting classical works again.
Although I’ve known Mr Haber for quite a while, there was an aspect of his personality which I hadn’t yet encountered: his rigidity. And this I refer to in a positive sense. In his words, Mr Haber says, “I work with convictions”, meaning that he conceives a work in his mind’s eye, where it is borne – very rarely does he sketch as a means of keeping record – and consequently works towards that image and acheiving as close as a result to it as possible.
He explains how he “doesn’t accept accidents” in his work, which often occur during the process of making – of creation. He persists until the end product mirrors the original concept. He further explains how being aware, or rather having the knowledge and understanding of the chemistry and chemical reaction of the materials/mediums at play helps min-imise, if not altogether do away with “accidents”.
Mr Haber is a tactile artist. “The eyes can only feel the shape of a sculpture to a certain extent,” he exclaims.
In fact, he has a preference for using outdoor spaces where viewers can experience and engage with his works on a completely different level, without the con-straints and restrictions imposed by a gallery or conventional art space. To illustrate this notion further, he describes one particular incident during his open air exhibition titled Fireworks (City Gate, 2005), where two blind girls literally got a feel for his work. “That was a moment of great satisfaction” he confessed. He also expressed the desire for there to be more artworks found in public spaces in Malta.
Another instance which truly left a mark in his career was his 2007 60-piece solo exhibition titled Fired Imagination, which was held at the Palais de l’Europe, Council of Europe, Strasbourg.
His current retrospective show might be a milestone in Mr Haber’s artistic career, however he confidently tells me that it will not change the direction in which he is heading creatively.
So much so, that he is bubbling with projects and ideas. Among the projects in the pipeline is one scheduled to be held in London, the details of which cannot be revealed, as yet; a solo show at the National Museum of Fine Arts, Valletta; and finally an outdoor project which he firmly hopes can take place in one of the capital city’s public spaces.
• Paul Haber’s retrospective runs at the Bank of Valletta head office in Sta Venera until July 21.