Event of the Month: Faith and Humanity – an Exhibition of Paintings by Mattia Preti

Mattia Preti was born in Taverna, a small town in Calabria (Italy) in 1613. He came to Malta in 1659 as a member of the Order of the Knights of St John and died here in 1699. To mark the 400th anniversary since his birth, an exhibition of some of his major works will be held in Valletta. The exhibition will feature paintings on loan from, among others, the Prado (Madrid), the Louvre (Paris), Uffizzi (Florence), Musei Vaticani (Rome) and Museo di Capodimonte (Naples) together with local masterpieces from the National Museum of Fine Arts and various churches. During his lifetime, Preti was a prolific painter and his works adorn many a church and country chapel. The artist’s exuberant style is representative of the late Baroque period. Many consider  the narrative cycle based on the life and martyrdom of St John the Baptist that he painted on the ceiling of St John’s Cathedral in Valletta, to be his crowing glory. Mattia Preti, also known as Il Cavalier Calabrese (the Knight from Calabria), is buried in St John’s Cathedral, Valletta.

A section of the vault of St John’s Cathedral (the pink spots are from my camera)

The Mystic Marriage of St Catherine

Mattia Preti – Faith and Humanity

The Palace State Rooms

Valletta

4 May – 7 July

Open daily from 10.00hrs till 16.00hrs

 

To learn more about this exhibition that is being organised by Heritage Malta go here.

For other events in Malta in May go here.

Event Of The Month: Vanity, Profanity and Worship–Jewellery From the Maltese Islands

This exhibition, orgaanised by Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti, brings together over 500 pieces of jewellery loaned from private and church collections. Most of these pieces have rarely been seen in public. The exhibition will highlight the beliefs, customs and fashion of the people of these islands. Lectures and workshops around this theme will run throughout the exhibition.

In my opinion, a jewellery exhibition is one event which should not be missed.

Vanity, Profanity & Worship

Casino Maltese

Valletta

Open daily up to May 26, 2013

Opening hours: Monday – Sunday: 10am to 6pm

Friday until 9pm

For events at the St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity go here.

To see What’s On in Malta in April go here.

Weekend Reflections: Mirrors and Mosaics

  

Several exhibitions were held during the Medieval Mdina weekend. One interesting exhibition, held at the Corte Capitanale (the former Courts of Justice), featured a number of very creative and colourful mosaics. Amongst them was this mirror framed by a simple yet eye-catching mosaic. The reflection is of the top of the opposite wall and of part of the adjacent archway.

Mosaics have been used as decorative art since ancient times. The oldest mosaic ever found dates back to the second half of the third millenium BC and was used to decorate a temple building in Ubaid, Mesopotamia. As witnessed during the exhibition, the art of mosaic-making is still thriving after five thousand years.

  

For more reflections from around the world visit James at Newton Area Photo.