Echoes of Life in Malta which runs from March 28 – April 12, was inspired by the success of a publication Malta & Gozo, An Artist’s View which was published five years ago by Miller Malta and an exhibition in Gozo in 2023 at which Cole showed a selection of paintings from the book concerning Gozo and Comino. In this new show, curated by Marika Azzopardi, alongside a number of oil paintings, Cole is delighted to be giving people the chance to see the originals of his Malta watercolour paintings in Valletta, works have been created over a period of almost 50 years from when he first visited Malta in 1976. I asked Cole to tell us more.
“The theme of the exhibition echoes life in Malta that I have experienced at first hand,” he explains. “When I was working as a political cartoonist for the Times newspaper of London, I drew a cartoon of Dom Mintoff the then Prime Minister which showed Napoleon kicking the British bulldog off the island into the Mediterranean. Malta Airways wanted to present it to Dom Mintoff so I swapped it for a return ticket to Malta and the rest is history. I fell in love with the island and returned home with a full portfolio of drawings and paintings. This exhibition covers the period, from when I rumbled around the towns and countryside with my sketchbook in privately owned buses with their religious slogans and icons right up until the arrival of the modern day fleet of buses.”
“One of my first impressions was of the beautiful Baroque architecture in Valletta and the streets which tumble down with flights of steps from one level to another. I love to draw them and delight in adding people that I meet into the compositions.”
“There are so many festivals throughout the year in Valletta and one that I enjoyed very much was the colourful Feast of St Peter and St Paul with all its decorative banners as it processed through the streets with a large band of musicians. The devotees carry religious items and a very heavy large sculpture of St Paul supported by eight hefty men. It was great to draw!”
The resulting paintings are displayed in the exhibition alongside a large oil painting 4ft x 3ft.
“An equally enjoyable festival is the Victory Day Regatta which raises very enthusiastic crowds supporting their own rowing clubs. I was fascinated watching the different array of boats and also the unique rowing technique of two men standing and two sitting which I had never seen in action before.” These paintings are also on display.
“The harbour is a natural wonder and has given me great pleasure drawing It whilst watching the busy activity of the small tourist boats and the large floating hotels that arrive and deluge Republic Street with tourists.”
“I have spent many enjoyable nights in the Manoel theatre listening to Baroque music and was privileged to be able to draw during a rehearsal and the result forms the poster image for the exhibition.”
“There was one incident that I recall when I went to see the gem of St John’s Co-Cathedral, Caravaggio’s painting ‘The beheading of St John the Baptist’. The room had been refurnished and the lighting on the painting changed. A spotlight had been directed on St John and the act of his beheading. It was so bright that you couldn’t see the two important prisoners in the background of the painting. I complained to the attendants and was told that it was to show the chiaroscuro, a contrast of light and dark in a painting. I replied that I thought that Caravaggio had already achieved that without their help!”
“I have only been able to exhibit a small proportion on the work I have created in Malta but I hope that visitors to the exhibition will appreciate and be reminded of the rich cultural heritage of Malta through its history, architecture, the arts, music and festival activities which are all available and which I have tried to capture through my art.”
Richard Cole, Echoes of Life in Malta runs from March 28 – April 12 at Malta Postal Museum. Entrance to the exhibition is free.
