Valletta Football Club and busking were the two passions of henna tattoo-artist Clive Brincat, 32, who died in a motorcycle accident early yesterday.
“All he spoke about was Valletta. It was always on his mind,” said his sister, Marilyn, adding that he also adored his 12-year-old son, Oretan, named after a Valletta football player.
“He also had a passion for his art, which he expressed through henna tattoos. To me, he had a hidden talent, which he never managed to develop further and do a proper tattooing course because of the expense,” she said.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Ms Brincat laughed as she recalled the time he drew a butterfly-shaped henna tattoo on her back when she was 17.
I checked the news websites and read about the 32-year-old from Floriana and thought: I hope it’s not him
In a last message to her brother on Facebook she wrote: “Dear brother, I just can’t believe what happened. You were always there when I needed something. You took my problems as yours. I had a shoulder to cry on... and I’m glad that we spent last summer together. I’m going to miss you.”
Known by their father’s nickname Il-Ġojja, Mr Brincat, who lived in Floriana, was loved by the people of Valletta.
He died when the motorcycle he was on, a Piaggo Runner, collided with a car driven by a 19-year-old policeman in Mqabba at about 5.30am.
“Everyone was shocked by the news this morning,” fellow busker Michael Sammut said as he recounted how the bad news spread among the tight-knit busking community that sets up in front of the law courts in the capital.
“When I got to work, early, as usual, I checked the news websites and read about the 32-year-old from Floriana and thought: ‘I hope it’s not him’. Later, I went for the usual coffee across the road and a woman who knows him well turned up.
“She was hysterical. It was him. We all cried,” he said.
Mr Sammut, an engraver, had been busking with Mr Brincat for about 14 years – since he first set up his stall at City Gate. They moved to the square outside the law courts six or seven years ago.
“Our work is similar in the sense that we both work with designs as an engraver and tattoo artist. Sometimes we shared designs,” Mr Sammut recalled, adding that Mr Brincat usually set up his stall in the summer months.
In fact, he last saw him during the Christmas holidays when Mr Brincat was walking through Valletta. “He was dressed so smart and was so different compared to the shorts and T-shirts we are used to seeing him in,” he smiled.
Mr Brincat was known to be a very calm man.
“Bonġu (good morning) was the first word he said. I always remember seeing him calm. There were times when foreign buskers took our place and many lost their patience. But he’d remain calm and just ask people to move up a little so we could all be happy,” Mr Sammut said. The funeral will be held on Monday at St Dominic church, Valletta, at 8.30am.