Stories of change : unveiling 1950s and 1960s Malta through Guido Stilon’s lens

Abstract

For the past three years, my weekends have been dedicated to working on Guido Stilon’s photographic collection, identify each photograph which remains stored in the Magna Żmien archive, working alongside Dr. Andrew Pace and Kristina Polidano (Kris). Though the process was long and trying, being exposed to these visual snippets of Malta’s past gave me a renewed perspective on the period in which Stilon was active, namely the 1950s and 1960s. The period has always intrigued me and while Stilon’s photographs were undoubtedly shaped by his privileged position, they remain valuable to the broader scope of historical research, offering a fresh outlook to an already well-studied era in Malta’s history. The idea of creating a visual narrative and analysis using Stilon’s collection was influenced by my personal interest in historical movies, since being a visual learner myself, movies help me to better understand and visualise historical contexts. When it came came to select a dissertation topic, I had recently watched a biographical movie called Lee, starring Kate Winslet as Elizabeth ‘Lee’ Miller, a wartime photographer. The movie makes use of Miller’s photographs as a narrative device, tracing her journey through war-torn Europe as she captured stills of what everyday life looked for millions experiencing the war at the frontlines. The idea behind the movie intrigued me and prompted me to incorporate a similar methodology in my own dissertation. However, the size and availability of Stilon’s archive posed a challenge since his photographs, which span a wide range of themes — including family, friendship, youth, society, sport, travel, education, politics, religion, and labour — made the selection process quite difficult. While I wanted to showcase as much of his work as possible to present a well-rounded depiction of the period, the restrictive word count and timeframe made this unfeasible. As a compromise, the structure of the main chapters revolve around three broad themes, including economic development, societal changes concerning women, and political identity, allowing for further expansion.