Sculptor Mario Agius together with his son Victor and daughter Charlene have come together for an art exhibition which perhaps is the first of its kind in Malta.

Entitled AGIUS3, the exhibition includes recent sculptures by Mario mainly in olive wood and a selection of contemporary works made over the last five years by the siblings.

For Mario, exhibiting together with his children is a wish come true.

“I feel that my dream has been accomplished and I am very proud of them.”

Daughter and son also expressed satisfaction at this unique undertaking, with Victor saying that “it feels like living a moment that has been lurking in my mind for the last 12 years.”

Mario recalled that at a tender age, his son would spend many hours in his workshop, scribbling and painting away.

Experimentation is one of the fundamental keys in every art form

“Victor had a fascination for clay and Charlene also exhibited creative tendencies when young,” he said.

Victor pointed out that his father’s workshop is the fulcrum of the family’s activities.

“It was and still is the place where we occasionally search for ‘treasures’ and materials and where we engage in dialogues, discussions and collaborations.”

The children have certainly benefitted from growing up in such a culturally rich environment.

“I encouraged them and always tried to nourish their interest in artistic and cultural events at school,” Mario said. “My wife – who is involved in theatre – and I also used to expose them to art museums, both locally and abroad.”

The three artists draw their inspiration from Malta’s nature as well as identity, bearing traces of rituals rooted since prehistoric times. As is to be expected given their similar but different backgrounds, influences on their works vary too and include Michelangelo Buonarroti, Anton Agius, Juginder Lamba, Auguste Rodin, William Turner, the anonymous prehistoric temple builders of Malta, the Lascaux cave painters, Giotto, and El Greco.

As a sculptor, Mario’s approach can be likened to Michelangelo’s who is reputed to have claimed that every block of stone has a statue in it waiting to be discovered.

“I draw inspiration from tree trunks or eroded stones. Then I try to bring out what I am seeing trapped within the form without interfering too much with nature.”

On the other hand, when working with hard stone or marble, Mario would already have an idea in mind and therefore, he looks for the right piece to bring it to life. That said, Mario’s preferred material remains wood as he finds it’s more challenging and offers different features and textures.

The spiritual dimension is what most informs Mario’s works.

“One of my latest solo exhibitions, entitled VITAE, celebrated life in its totality including suffering, the search for God and the theme of the family.”

While the sculptor in Victor is there, yearning to break free, he has extended his range and medium by working in ceramics and other media.

“I feel lucky to have experienced various processes and witnessed different sculpture techniques used by my father and even by other artist friends of my father who, besides sculpting in wood, also included clay modelling and casting in various materials,” he said.

“Experimentation is one of the fundamental keys in every art form. I express my artistic language in a variety of techniques from sculpture to painting, from installation to performance and so on.”

Victor is obsessed with the concept of formless matter.

“It’s been a recurring theme in my visual research since 2009, after I read Formless: A User’s Guide by Yve-Alain Bois and Rosalind E. Krauss.”

But his artistic research stretches far and wide, particularly focused on sites of ecological rawness, primitive and virgin territories and locations which may have been used ritualistically.

“I feel intrigued by the genesis of our own existence here and the way the prehistoric crude stones in our temples and shores have shaped our narratives and witnessed the rituals of our ancestors,” he said.

I draw inspiration from tree trunks or eroded stones

Charlene’s works on show are for the most part seascapes, the sea being a subject that, because of its volatile nature, lends itself to an infinity of interpretations and representations.

“I enjoy drawing and painting its abstractions in agitated waves. I feel lost when I draw it. I can’t imagine myself living away from it,” she said.

Charlene has ventured into several media.

“Besides working in acrylics, during my University studies I also worked in oils, tempera, watercolours and sculpted in wood and terracotta. However, when painting, I feel more comfortable working in acrylics as they dry up quickly and urge me to be more direct in the painting process.”

Charlene’s works range from the conventional to the more experimental semi-abstract and show a certain consistency in style and coloration. She already has firm plans coming up, with a participation in a female collective with four other artists at the Cavalieri Art Hotel in October.

Victor too has plans in the pipeline. In October he will exhibit at the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza, Italy together with Italian artist Valentina D’Accardi. He then returns to Malta in November for a collaboration with composer Mariella Cassar-Cordina and author Immanuel Mifsud in Layers, an interdisciplinary project taking place at the St Agatha catacombs in Rabat, Malta.

■  AGIUS³ runs at the Exhibition Hall of the Ministry for Gozo in St Francis Square, Victoria, until September 25. Opening hours are Monday to Friday from 8.15am to 12.45pm and Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 9.30am to 12.30pm. AGIUS3 is hosted by the Ministry for Gozo and supported by Bank of Valletta, Xagħra local council, Qbajjar Restaurant, J Portelli Projects and Gozo Pools. For more information, visit www.marioagius.com.