George Preca and the birth of modern sensibility in Maltese painting

Abstract

This essay seeks to trace the development of Maltese A1i from a conventional traditional style as practised in Malta at the beginning of the 20th century towards a modem sensibility, where the individuality of the local artists is asserted. The Maltese artist Giorgio Preca has been influential in injecting into the young generation of artists, a spirit of adventure, largely through his works executed in a modem idiom. The original scope of this essay was to locate works by this artist and attempt a critical assessement of his work, possibly even tracing his influence on the budding artists in Malta soon after the Second World War. Unfortunately, due to the unavailability of his better work, which in its bulk is found in Rome, and to the utter disinterest of his immediate family circle to be of any help, one had to contend with a few specimens of dubious significance. An art appreciation of Preca's works has for this reason been kept to a minimum since it would be tantamount to committing an injustice to the artist. Indeed if the paintings available in Malta were to be taken as the only gauge for a critical assessment, one would be forced to conclude that Preca was not all that exciting as an artist and in some cases hardly less than mediocre. This essay has, therefore, on the advice of my tutors, veered from its original course and taken a tum towards acknowledging Giorgio Preca as a pioneer of modem art in Malta whose significance on the local artistic scene should be attributed to his strength of character and his courage to break the bonds of convention, which shackled him. Largely by means of examples, this essay traces hesitant steps towards a modernist idiom, and an individuality, which gains in assertiveness as the artist gains in maturity. The artists Anton Inglott, Emvin Cremona, and Willie Apap are the chief protagonists who have contributed to the development of a new aesthetic in religious art, as well as in other genres, by keeping within an accepted academic conventionality albeit giving it their distinctive timbre. An important chapter has been dedicated to the foundation of the Modern Art Group. This has permitted a discussion of Antoine Camilleri and Esprit Barthet, two artists affiliated to this group. A selection of photographs of a few key paintings trace a development from their early work to a more assured style. Another artist worth mention, Frank Portelli, is discussed in the Conclusion. A meeting with him which allowed me access to his studio and to some of his more important work was only arranged on the eve of the submission of the thesis and therefore too late to allow me to discuss him in this important chapter. The aim of the final chapter is to establish the identity of the artists mentioned, by comparing their works which tackle the same theme. In this way, one can recognize how these artists, from a common springboard provided by the Malta Government School of Art, under the directorship of the Caruana Dingli brothers, had tossed into various artistic milieux abroad, absorbed influences and emerged as distinct fully fledged artists.