It is said that a picture can say a thousand words and thanks to newly-published book Passjoni – Merging Art and Faith, people will be able to see every single one of those 1,000 words and much more. Anna Marie Galea speaks to photographer Mario Cocker about what drew him to sacred photography in the first place and how he put together his beautiful and timeless homage to what he considers to be religious art.

Mario Cocker needs little introduction; a stable presence in the field of photography for almost four decades, he has had ample time to discover where his true interests lie: “Photography has been my profession for over 36 years and I have studios in Malta, Egypt and England, however, sacred photography is my passion. For me, there is nothing more beautiful than taking photos in a church all alone, wrapped in nothing but silence. The quiet allows me to think, reflect, and better take in everything that surrounds me. This is something which draws me in, time and time again.”

Passjoni was not only Cocker’s pet project but it is also the result of a fortuitous meeting of minds and ideas: “After more than 15 sacred art photographic exhibitions which took place all around Malta, I met David Bezzina, general manager of the publishing house Horizons. I asked him if it would be possible to produce a book with some of my images and the result is in our hands. It took me 15 years to amass my sacred photography collection and I still feel like there are always more photos I want to take and share with the world.”

A labour of love like nothing else, the book was designed in only one night but when it came to the wording, things were a little less clear-cut: “It’s quite funny because I had a really good idea of how I was going to put the photos together but then when the publisher asked me what wording we were going to use, I had no clue. The day after that, MaryAnn from Horizons phoned me and told me that Mario Coleiro was going to do the writing for the book in Maltese. I was really happy about this development. Iggy Fenech later did the translation into English. I couldn’t be happier with the result that we have in hand.”

The satisfaction Cocker feels when he is taking sacred photos can only be superseded by his happiness at everything coming together in book form: “When everything was put together, I was nothing short of speechless. Sacred art is an amazing subject to photograph because it has so many layers. My wish is for everyone to notice and appreciate the intricate artistic statues we have on the island. We are so blessed to have so many unique pieces which are so integral to our culture. I believe that the more that people will be able to appreciate the rich tapestry of our sacred pieces, the greater the chance that they will preserve traditional ceremonies like that of Good Friday. We have so much that goes unnoticed by many, I wanted to literally turn my lens on to it and give it pride of place.”

Passjoni has not only succeeded in allowing Cocker to crystallise and immortalise his passion, but it has also spurred him on to start new projects: “I feel so excited and elated about how Passjoni turned out. In the future, I’m looking forward to continuing a book about statues from different churches and we have already discussed publishing another book about statues which are no longer seen and miraculous tradition stories.”

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