What stories do you tell in Construct, your new exhibition?

Rather than actual stories, I think what I want to say is what grabs me about a particular scene. Sometimes I’m standing in a space – it needn’t be your traditional picturesque square – and I’m just struck by its beauty. It’s the beauty of the lines of architecture, the fall of light or just a pleasing symmetry. This is what grabs me and in painting it, I’m trying to recall this perfect arrangement.

I suppose my story is one ofvisual satisfaction that I just need to record on canvas and convey it to the viewer.

By virtue of your eavesdropping perspective, you are frequently present in your paintings. What relationship do you have with your subjects?

I’m always present in my paintings. My presence is announced by the fact that a painting’sperspective is at the exact angle which to me would be special. Secondly, I’m present in the way I translate a scene into paint, reducing and editing it to its basics and presenting it to the viewer.

In a way I’m mediating reality and giving it my own very particular meaning for the viewer.

I’m not emotionally attached to my subjects but I suppose I’m instantly attracted to them, enough to spend time working away at portraying them on canvas. Once that’s out of my system, I let go and move on to the next subject.

You frequently portray ordinary moments: yet do these moments have something of the extraordinary about them?

The paintings in Construct are not about people. Although I’ve worked extensively on groupings of people in previous collections, this past year I have been increasingly attracted to the powerful lines that buildings make against nature and in relation to humans.

I’m fascinated by the strength, solidity and reassuring qualities of blocks of masonry and I think this emerges quite evidently in my recent works. It is more about timeless qualities than about a fleeting moment. That in itself is extraordinary to me.

What role does Valletta play in Construct: backdrop or actor?

Valletta is very much the actor in many of my works. I’m fascinated by its beauty, history, timelessness, people, even its decay and defacement. It is impossible not to react to Valletta once you’ve seen it.

Does Valletta lend itself to painting?

Valletta is laden with meaning. Apart from the obvious beauty of its baroque buildings, the cool classicism of its few colonial structures and the exciting developments at City Gate, its beauty lies in its layers of history. Scratch the surface and you see so much more. Valletta is a place that is so laden with stories that it is an instant spur to creativity.

What is special about the light in Valletta?

Because of the grid pattern of Valletta’s urban layout, you get a lot of diagonals of light and shade. The symmetry is extremely pleasing. The wide open spaces create huge pools of light, while the narrow side streets contrast with their shaded areas. The ubiquitous honey patina of the limestone buildings – especially those that have undergone restoration in recent years - creates a warm glow which is particularly evident in the late afternoon. The sea surrounding Valletta also creates light patterns and bounces light back into the city, creating pleasing contrasts.

Valletta by day or by night?

Valletta by day, by night, in the rain, in blazing sunshine, on a Monday night, on a Sunday morning: it’s impossible not to be moved by Valletta at any point in time.

‘Construct’

In October 2014, Celia Borg Cardona will present her new collection of paintings in an exhibition entitled Construct at the Upper Halls of St James Cavalier. In this exhibition, the artist’s recent work shows that her steadfast interest in streetscapes and bird’s eye views of gatherings of people has now turned into a focus on sweeping, soaring architectural views of Maltese towns, sometimes on correspondingly oversize canvases.

Curated by art historian Francesca Balzan, Construct shows from October 10 till November 9 daily. Entrance is free.