An exhibition to honour the life and work of Carmelo Mangion (1905-1997) has been set up at the Casino Maltese, Valletta.

Mangion was one of Malta’s most interesting modern artists, who, however, lived a very private life and who did not show his work in public. His two daughters are now taking matters into their own hands and bringing their father’s successes to the forefront.

Christ before Pilate

Mangion produced artworks purely for his own satisfaction, so much so that he often worked on inexpensive and reutilised supports, such as newspapers, tracing and brown paper, uninterested in how they would appear in a few decades.

Mangion was an atypical Maltese artist, because he was one of the first to break away from the academic approach to subject matter. In fact, he is now as well-known for his landscapes and seascapes as he is for the industrial views he captured of a changing Malta. Like most Maltese artists of his generation, Mangion furthered his studies abroad and he even studied in New York.

Harbour Scene

His artistic development allowed him to bring something new to Malta and to the students he taught. His expressive works – be they oil, gouache, watercolours, drawings or etchings – all possess a vibrant quality and he had a unique way of capturing scenes with his thick and broad strokes and lines.

Even as an artist who was a teacher and, therefore, surrounded by students, he still worked very much in isolation.

A recent study on etchings at the Malta School of Art by a History of Art student, Sarah Chircop, has brought the work of Mangion in this area to prominence.

Joseph Paul Cassar’s in-depth study of Mangion’s life and work has done much to raise more awareness about the artist whom he aptly calls a leading pioneer of Maltese Modern Art.

This research was published in 2008 and the book – Carmelo Mangion, His Life and Works – is also available for sale at a reduced price.

Together with Josef Kalleya Mangion is considered to be the father of Maltese modern art

One must here also point out that together with Josef Kalleya Mangion, is considered to be the father of Maltese modern art.

Not many artists can boast of having intellect, talent and creativity. And even though Mangion possessed all of these desired characteristics for an artist he did not like to show them off.

Yet, he was lucky enough to have daughters whose undying love and pride in their father’s oeuvre are seeing them set up another exhibition in his honour, with several aims: to keep their father’s memory alive, making his works in private collections available to the public and for a general better consciousness of Maltese modern art.

Power Station

Although there is some chronology to the exhibition the works on display do not form a comprehensive retrospective.

Rather, the 50 exhibited works were chosen by his daughters are grouped into themes executed in a variety of media, genres and expressions. Among the variety of works are religious scenes, portraits, industrial scenes, landscapes and seascapes.

Viewers can, therefore, become better acquainted with the man and the artist and the spirit of his output. From bathers to chimneys, from portraits of his family to those of musicians, from etchings of the Brooklyn Bridge to etchings of Malta’s power station, from the beheading of St John to the deposition of Christ from the Cross, from several views of the Methodist church to Msida creek and St Julian’s bay where he and his family spent their summers by the sea and several views of chruch interiors, including St John’s Co-Cathedral.

And several versions of the same scene are presented side by side for a better understanding of the artist’s vision and development of style.

The title of the exhibition, ‘Carmelo Mangion – visions of a Maltese master’ pays tribute to his career as a drawing master, which Mangion prided himself in.

This exhibition is also a tribute to Mangion’s loving wife, who has only recently passed away.

Carmelo Mangion – Visions of a Maltese Master is open until March 27 at the Casino Maltese, Valletta.