Painting of female images during the Knights' period in Malta

Abstract

The aim of this dissertation is to analyse the images of women produced in Malta during the Knights stay on the Island between 1530 and 1798. A selection of works produced by leading artistic figures such as Matteo Perez d' Aleccio, Caravaggio, Mattia Preti and Antoine Favray, have been chosen to provide an overview of the way the female form in art developed. The selected paintings shall be discussed in their historical and social context so as to form a clear picture of the way the image of women in art was conditioned. In addition, the study of female images shall also attempt to gain an insight into the actual lives of women at the time providing an innovative reading into paintings. The dissertation has been divided into a number of chapters each with a specific theme associated with the images of women. These chapters encompass a broad selection of themes ranging from Maternal Images and Saints to Allegories and Secular Images. Marian images have been excluded as a theme due to it's the vast number of subjects that it encompasses. However, a selection of Marian images more directly related to the title in question have been included within the section discussing Maternal Images. When necessary, these chapters were further subdivided in order to provide a clearer argument. The discussion of painting within these sections follows a general chronological order. Numerous art historical publications have been consulted which provided important guidelines on stylistic and iconographic grounds. Specialised publications, such as John T. Spike's recent catalogue of Mattia Preti's works, and theses such as Bernardine Scicluna's study on Stefano and Alessio Erardi, functioned as key documentary sources, whilst more generalised vii publications, including the work of Mario Buhagiar and John Gash, were essential in providing the right art historical perspective. In addition, sociological and anthropological readings were also consulted in order to avoid treating the female images in isolation of its social context thus creating a holistic view of the images of women in art. The selected paintings under discussion have already been well documented by previous authors, which means that archival research was not essential to this study. At times, however, it was necessary to check the sources. Although many of the works discussed have already been published, the challenge of this subject lies in the fact that the images of women have not as yet been tackled as an independent subject. Thus, this offers a new perspective at the reading and appreciation of art as a whole.