Groundbreaking research presented in Digital Art History Conference in Croatia

Prof. Charlene Vella, Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Malta, recently presented latest research at the international conference Digital Art History — Methods, Practices, Epistemologies V: Critical Approaches to Sources in (Digital) Art History, held at the Institute of Art History and University Computing Centre (SRCE) of the University of Zagreb, Croatia, on 16 and 17 October 2025.

The paper, entitled Reconstructing St Anne’s Church, Fort St Angelo, Malta: A Digital and Geophysical Approach to its Architectural Evolution, was co-authored with Prof. Sebastiano D’Amico and Dr Emanuele Colica of the University of Malta, and Dr Fabio Linguanti of the Politecnico di Torino and Aix-Marseille Université.

The study forms part of an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Department of Art and Art History and the Department of Geosciences at the University of Malta.

It employs ground-penetrating radar (GPR), terrestrial LiDAR 3D scanning, and historic Building Information Modelling (hBIM) to examine one of Malta’s oldest ecclesiastical structures: the Church of St Anne, located within Fort St Angelo in Birgu.

Believed to date from the Norman or early Swabian period, the church has undergone significant transformations under successive rulers — Norman, Swabian, Angevin, and later, the Knights of St John. The research combines digital survey data with art-historical analysis to reassess the building’s orientation and construction phases, identifying possible remains of an earlier sanctuary beneath the existing floor.

Prof. Vella’s paper demonstrated how digital and geophysical methods can illuminate lost or altered architectural features, offering new insights into the cultural significance and spatial history of medieval Maltese sacred spaces. The project also engaged critically with the “politics of data” in digital heritage, reflecting on how technological tools both enhance and shape our interpretations of the past.

Her contribution was part of Session VI: Digital Reconstructions and Visualisations of Cultural Heritage and drew strong interest from participants attending from sixteen countries.

For further information about Prof. Vella’s ongoing research on medieval Maltese and Mediterranean architecture, visit her website.