Victor Grech is a consultant paediatrician by day and an artist by night and in his free time.

At the age of 43, he has taken the plunge and decided to mount his first solo exhibition, which includes about 170 paintings varying considerably in dimension.

A specialist in paediatric cardiology, Prof. Grech is aptly exhibiting his works in the Cotoner Hall of the old Sacra Infermeria, today the Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, where the Malta Institute for Medical Education is holding a conference on Grown Up Congenital Heart Disease.

Prof. Grech, who has found painting Maltese landscapes and seascapes a particularly relaxing pastime, fuses elements of impressionism and expressionism in his work. His preferred medium is oil on canvas, which he applies to his surfaces in a thick and copious manner, aided only by a palette knife, a technique he might have adopted from John Borg Manduca, the Maltese impressionist artist who, Prof. Grech confesses, is his inspiration and mentor.

The exhibition is open to the public till December 14 between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Anyone interested in meeting the artist can do so tomorrow between 1 and 6 p.m. and on Sunday and Monday from 10 a.m. to noon.