The creative inner child

An exhibition entitled ‘From a Different Angle’ launches Mark Attard, otherwise known as Mark Kram, as a painter rather than the musician some may know him as.

One cannot but admire the kind of courage Mark Attard had to exhibit his work to the public, especially when new to the world of exhibitions- Charlene Vella

The title is a curious one, but the logic behind it is clear when you see it. It justifies both the diversity of subject matter and its viewpoints.

Attard’s fascination with music comes through in spite of the fact that the themes are much more wide-ranging. This may be a bit too much, but you can also regard it as a tribute to his versatility. The media employed in the execution vary as much as the themes – from charcoal to oil, and from watercolours to pastels.

The works reveal divergent personalities. The viewer is presented with what looks very much like a talented but mixed portfolio.

Two paintings illustrating musical instruments impress with their fresh execution. They are both lyrical and pictorially accomplished. One is One Note Sunburst in oil and the other is Relief Valves in watercolour.

One section is devoted to close-up fruit. Cherries, pears and peaches in oil pastels make interesting individual compositions and show good execution.

A Venetian scene and a still life of grapes and vine leaves have a similar execution, but are in a different style.

Other works are more playful. I mention, by way of example, the plummeting scene revealed in Top Of My World and In The Shade. As Pablo Picasso once said: “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” The creative child in Attard is apparent, and he should definitely hold on to it, tightly.

Perhaps this exhibition comes at too early a stage in Attard’s formation.

Nonetheless, one cannot but admire the kind of courage he had to exhibit his work to the public, especially when new to the world of exhibitions.

An artist friend says her anxiousness to exhibit new works is equivalent to exposing herself in the nude to a not-very-understanding audience.

When you launch an exhibition, you must be prepared to allow your work to speak for itself and take centre stage. Your exhibits are part of you. They are an expression that emerge from your being, a reflection of your inner self. You are revealing your most sacred self to the public.

If an artist is not curious or anxious about the public’s reaction, then he has lost the excitement of being. Art will never be the same or develop in the same way without the viewer’s interaction.

There is room for improvement in Attard’s work, and the curatorship could have been more acute, but there is an element of fun and joie de vivre that is inherent to the exhibits.

If Attard has only recently immersed himself in the world of painting, and is willing to work on technique and maintain the exploration of imaginative themes (which is an equally important ingredient to art), then he may have a future in the art world.

I am willing to wait for him to prove it.

‘From a Different Angle’ is on at Agog Contemporary Gallery, Mdina Road, Żebbuġ until February 6.