January took me around to view two strikingly different exhibitions, both of which carry works by relatively newcomers to the local art scene. My second viewing took me to see Expressions at Cosmana Navarra in Rabat. The work of Raymond Borg, presenting his second solo with a stock of 20 paintings on show, this is an exhibition whose colours strike you right in the solar plexus of your eye.
As Mr Borg candidly admits, "I love using colours and using Maltese subjects and bright colours which keep me attached with our lovely small island. I hope that my art gives that positive and happiness feeling to people".
The first painting to catch my full attention is a canvas of acrylic tulips vaguely called Flowers, executed upon a base of gesso and sack, fresco style. There is a clever use of colour combinations that, contrary to some still life specimens on show, are neatly wrapped up in stylistic carefulness. The colours are right, the composition is vibrant, and the take is quite innovative at least for a Maltese artist.
An abstraction of colour comes through in an abstract work called Maria, which Mr Borg explains away as "...a special mix of gesso with other material, thrown on the sack at one go using acrylic as medium. By using special varnish I get that enamelling effect." I particularly liked the enamelling effect that blends the colours so deliciously... that you'd like to reach out and touch. This is more than mere abstraction however - it is Mr Borg's own tribute to his mother who died when barely 32.
On to some Maltese scenes which wouldn't seem Maltese if you didn't live on Malta. Some seem a veritable Venetian depiction, such as Il-Luzzu, which extracts just one aspect of the Maltese boat and repeats it to grab the attention of the viewer. Mr Borg plays about with a plethora of suffused and gradated colours that, juxtaposed against a blend of frothing sky, turn the picture into an exciting schematic adventure.
With a background that has seen him achieving certification in jewellery and design, as well as a diploma in art and history of art, the artist has dabbled with clay modelling, stone and wood carving, and the repainting of antique dolls.
His painting on fabric incidentally featured on dresses in Maltese song festivals. Presently working on an art exhibition to be staged in Vittoriosa and another in London, he is keeping pretty busy.
• Expressions - Art exhibition by Raymond Borg is open until the end of March at Cosmana Navarra, St Paul's Street, Rabat, Malta. It is open Tuesday to Thursday from noon to 3.30 p.m. and from 6.30 to 10.30 p.m. and on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 3.30 p.m. and from 6.30 to 11 p.m.
As Mr Borg candidly admits, "I love using colours and using Maltese subjects and bright colours which keep me attached with our lovely small island. I hope that my art gives that positive and happiness feeling to people".
The first painting to catch my full attention is a canvas of acrylic tulips vaguely called Flowers, executed upon a base of gesso and sack, fresco style. There is a clever use of colour combinations that, contrary to some still life specimens on show, are neatly wrapped up in stylistic carefulness. The colours are right, the composition is vibrant, and the take is quite innovative at least for a Maltese artist.
An abstraction of colour comes through in an abstract work called Maria, which Mr Borg explains away as "...a special mix of gesso with other material, thrown on the sack at one go using acrylic as medium. By using special varnish I get that enamelling effect." I particularly liked the enamelling effect that blends the colours so deliciously... that you'd like to reach out and touch. This is more than mere abstraction however - it is Mr Borg's own tribute to his mother who died when barely 32.
On to some Maltese scenes which wouldn't seem Maltese if you didn't live on Malta. Some seem a veritable Venetian depiction, such as Il-Luzzu, which extracts just one aspect of the Maltese boat and repeats it to grab the attention of the viewer. Mr Borg plays about with a plethora of suffused and gradated colours that, juxtaposed against a blend of frothing sky, turn the picture into an exciting schematic adventure.
With a background that has seen him achieving certification in jewellery and design, as well as a diploma in art and history of art, the artist has dabbled with clay modelling, stone and wood carving, and the repainting of antique dolls.
His painting on fabric incidentally featured on dresses in Maltese song festivals. Presently working on an art exhibition to be staged in Vittoriosa and another in London, he is keeping pretty busy.
• Expressions - Art exhibition by Raymond Borg is open until the end of March at Cosmana Navarra, St Paul's Street, Rabat, Malta. It is open Tuesday to Thursday from noon to 3.30 p.m. and from 6.30 to 10.30 p.m. and on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 3.30 p.m. and from 6.30 to 11 p.m.