Today, the name of Chris Zarb is synonymous with visionary and mythological art. His paintings, digital prints and two-dimensional works express a world full of revelations and futuristic fantasies. The title for this collection of his works is The Weight of Emptiness, a title which explains symbolically the life of a person in today’s world full of sorrow and pain. According to the artist, it is a difficult emotional journey full of bad and unwanted experiences which are very distressful.
Different than in other previous personal exhibitions, in this exhibition we see a deep religious connection with the way his solitary figures are revealed. For example, in the work Mother of Mercy we see a parallel approach to Munch’s philosophy of expressing sanctity and sensuality when the artist depicted his famous Madonna. In this work, Mr Zarb portrays an explicit and corporeally female nude torso of the Virgin Mary. She is shown with large breasts, with one of the shoulders lifted to the front to suggest foreshortening to the composition. The figure with a slightly opened mouth, gazes in the eyes of the viewers to convey dialogue and comprehension. It is a portrayal of duality, the sacred and the profane, a subject matter which spiritually and symbolic of the generative creative force of femininity. She also symbolises Mother Nature.
In another powerful and provoking work, Maid and Martyr, the artist depicts the typical representation of a saint with a halo, lit from above, with an inclined head and closed eyes expressing modesty, while her body is twisted towards the light to reach the divine. This painting is representing St Joan of Arc. The artist captures the drama of the final moments of the saint amid the flames. Jean Massieu, who was a priest, doyen, and who served as bailiff during the trial, testified that St Joan of Arc’s dress was stolen and she was left with nothing to wear. Mr Zarb illustrated the saint naked as she was stripped of her dignity, yet she preserved her chastity by wearing only a pair of gloves.
In other interesting works in this exhibition, Mr Zarb investigates the concept of the emotional and faith conflicts humans experience in life. Works like At the Edge of Heaven, The One Who Looks Inside and Daedalus deal with questions related to the existential phenomena and life beyond us.
In The One Who Looks Inside, we see the figure of a man wearing a gas mask. This work was inspired by the writings of the world-renowned psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung. Here, by using dark earthly colours, the artist created an image of a human being in a surreal and futuristic environment. I believe that this work is coming from the “inside” world, from the unconscious. It is a dream image, symbolically representing humanity. It is a relevant archetypal symbol which has a universal significance.
In his intriguing composition entitled Medusa, a slender, nude female figure is shown in profile. It is an iconic figure taken from the Greek mythology. For many she is a symbol of female rage, sublime and terrifying that represents nihilism and romantic idealism. In this work, Mr Zarb captures beautifully the contours of a nude female figure with arms crossed and an open palm, slightly bent head, with eyes peeking behind the black mask and tentacles flowing across the upper part of the painting.
In his fourth personal exhibition, Mr Zarb expresses his materialised dynamic thoughts through the spiritual and fantastic realms of life. He is again inviting us to enter into a complex, aesthetic dream which takes us to an unknown journey. Yet, we can only get a glimpse of his spiritual discovery of the sources and energy of the mysteries that lie beyond humanity.
• The Weight of Emptiness runs at the Razzett tal-Markiż Mallia Tabone Centre for National Culture, Mosta until June 25.