As we battle with the summer heat below an archetypal sky-blue sky, it’s a delight to discover a series of works that show ‘rain on the windshield’, a new collection that has been three years in the making. And they’re worth the wait because each is startlingly ‘stand-out’ in a country of dry gold landscapes, for real and on board and canvas. In there ‘rain on windscreen’ works, raindrops dance and swirl, causing each view to become abstracted, just as our vision does behind glass upon which rivulets roam and run, each with an apparent life of their own.
Although largely self-taught, Ciantar’s natural talent and creative curiosity shine through. “I am not a professional artist, nor have I studied art. God simply gave me a little talent,” he explains. “However, I was lucky to have Harry Alden as art teacher in secondary school and later the privilege of the guidance of Anton Agius.”
Looking at Cinatar’s glistening works, you can almost sense cool water on your skin and feel your body temperature drop a notch, and so Times2 caught up with Ciantar to find out more.
“The idea all started by chance,” he smiles. “I was giving a lift to my daughter, in the rain, and got stuck in traffic. She was bored, started taking photos and one of them pictures just lit up something in me. Although I hadn’t painted for a while, I always had a passion for streetscapes, and her photo looked to me like a painting already! How original, I thought. I just couldn’t wait to get home to translate that image onto the canvas.”
“The rain on our windshields is not an image we usually appreciate. I found there’s beauty in It. My paintings are simply a record of that split-second image. like time stood still and I hope viewers share the same feeling of calmness and freshness I feel when I look at them. “
“When I was young, I didn’t particularly appreciate rain. It was the disrupter of activities, the end of summer and the constant reason for drama in Msida where I lived. The more I grew up, the less I complained about it. Later I welcomed it, as I learned more about our connection with water as humans, and I thanked God whenever it rained.”
“And once I started that first painting, rain took another form of meaning for me, a form providence almost. I became like a hunter – that’s how I saw myself – going out for my next catch, craving new material to work on, too and too many times coming home empty handed!”
“My material of reference comes from the photos I take from my phone’s camera. I could take hundreds of photos driving around in the rain without finding that image that inspires me. It has to have the right depth, angle, and movement or it wouldn’t work. Mostly, I prefer the night shots because the reflections of the cars and building lights all lend to a more dramatic result.”
“The rain on the windshield amplifies the light reflections, distorts the image and it changes every second. There’s no pattern. The image is the outcome of the intensity of the rain; there’s that very light rain, also the large intermittent drops, but also heavy rain, windy rain and rain so intense the windshield is like a waterfall. Movement is important in my art, and the rain adds chaos.”
Most of the paintings in this exhibition depict locations around the Sliema and St Julian’s, the areas through which Ciantar generally drive during his work and daily routines. Others, however, feature popular landmarks including as Naxxar Square and Palazzo Buleben and the adjacent church in Zebbuġ with which the artist has a special connection.
“I have to admit I did risk getting a ticket for ‘using the phone while driving’, when I was taking photos. I taking precautions and most of the time I park beforehand, but some opportunities are hard to miss! I stopped to allow people to cross at the Sliema Kiosk zebra crossing [which appears in one of the paintings[ and whilst I was waiting and the engine was idling, I realized there was an opportunity for great material: I placed phone on top of steering wheel and started shooting away not realizing a police on a motorcycle had pulled next to me. Luckily, he understood and let me off with a warning!”
10% of all proceeds will be donated to the Children & Youth First Nepal Foundation. Ciantar explains that his client, and now friend, Reinhard Meusburger is behind this choice of charity. Meusburger began building 10 years ago after the earthquake that devastated an area of Nepal and left thousands of children orphaned, homeless, and without education. “They have some 400 children now and they want to purchase an adjacent land to build a bigger kitchen and be able to offer more accommodation,” he says.
To see these works visit Frank Salt Real Estate, 201 Tower Road, Sliema June 19 to July 19.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Saturday: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM.