Trees, a joint exhibition by a leading poet and an artist, is a ‘dialogue’ of texts and images, so intimately related are the words and the paintings.

The exhibition consists of 22 paintings by German artist Christine Kunkler, inspired by poems written by Joe Friggieri, a professor of philosophy at the University of Malta.

It features magnificent trees still to be found in the Maltese islands, including the jacaranda, the flame tree, the sandarac gum tree, the silk floss tree, the poplar, the almond, the olive, the Judas tree and the Norfolk pine.

The paintings reflect the enigmatic force and exuberance of nature and the poems have been described as “meditations on trees as being at once defiers of change and age but also as symbols of the very change they seem to defy”.

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At a time when the natural environment is being constantly eroded, the exhibition is meant to invite visitors to admire the beauty of trees and do what they can to prevent their destruction. This was one of the aims both the poet and the painter had in mind when they embarked on the joint project two years ago.

The exhibition is open every day at the Mdina Cathedral Museum till October 15.