Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti is organising Curious Beauty: An Alternative Costume Exhibition at Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum in Mdina from April 14 to June 16.
Under the artistic direction of Caroline Tonna and Francesca Balzan, historic costume and accessories from the State, Church and important private collections will be displayed in contemporary art installations against the backdrop of the beautifully evocative medieval Palazzo Falson.
This exhibition is the latest in a series of temporary exhibitions held at Palazzo Falson through the years, with a special focus on the decorative arts. This is the biggest exhibition so far and the first to run through all of the museum rooms presenting antique costumes and accessories in a dialogue with the museum’s permanent collection, housed in period rooms. This unprecedented show is a unique encounter between antique artefacts and contemporary art.
Palazzo Falson was the home of Olof Frederick Gollcher (188901962), a collector, artist and philanthropist, who filled his home with a vast collection of antiques ranging from furniture to silver, jewellery to paintings, antique books and family archives. The origins of the house date back to the Medieval period and the building is open to the public as a historic house museum. This temporary exhibition takes its cue from the joie de vivre and art-filled life of Gollcher, and presents precious historic artefacts in contemporary art installations which prize beauty and humour, presenting them to the public in a quirky and unusual manner. Many of the artefacts were loaned from important private collections and are being shown in public for the first time ever. Other loans represent the very best exemplars of historic costume to be found in the State collection as well as the Cathedrals of Malta and Gozo.
A full programme of events and special tours will run throughout the duration of this exhibition. For more information: www.patrimonju.org
