There is something delightfully paradoxical about Gabriella Azzopardi’s art. At once deeply introspective yet widely resonant, strange yet soothing, meticulously detailed yet dreamily fluid.
From July 31 to August 2, art lovers will have a rare opportunity to experience her newest collection in a unique setting: an open studio viewing at a private villa on De Paule Avenue, Balzan, opposite the Corinthia Palace Hotel.
The villa will be transformed into a gallery space where visitors can explore the work at their own pace and enjoy a glass of wine in a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere.
Although she keeps a deliberately low profile, Azzopardi has built a prolific and increasingly international career. Her art has been showcased in solo and collective exhibitions both locally and abroad, including in London and Vienna, and has been featured in UK and US art publications.
Azzopardi is known for her visionary and surreal style, often weaving together figures, architecture, nature and emotional symbolism in ways that feel at once ancient and contemporary.
She works across various media and her background in art has shaped a body of work that is both visually refined and emotionally resonant.
One can feel the echoes of baroque grandeur in her compositions. But there is also a distinct undercurrent of something different – a type of surrealism that tips its hat to René Magritte, Hieronymus Bosch and the world of dreams.
In fact, Azzopardi’s figures often appear ghostlike or semi-translucent, while her dreamscapes combine architecture, natural elements and psychological symbolism.
Recurring motifs include waves and water, masks and faces, wings, trees and architectural details.
These motifs are never heavy-handed. Indeed, they appear organically, like half-remembered fragments from a dream. And despite the often melancholic or mysterious tone, her work is never alienating but deeply human.
Among the works being exhibited is Out Beyond the Stillness of Daybreak and Nightfall, a rich and vibrant painting that straddles the line between fantasy and floral reverie. At its centre is a serene female figure emerging from a lush frame of oversized flowers. The blooms surround what appears to be a window or portal, through which a soft-lit path leads into the dreamlike countryside.
Equally as powerful is Voices of Majestic Thunder, a monochromatic seascape rendered in sweeping tones of stormy blue. Here, a lone ship drifts into an otherworldly tempest, its tiny form dwarfed by an overwhelming curtain of rain and cloud. But it is the sky itself that becomes the true subject; ghostly faces emerge within the roiling clouds.
The studio will be open from July 31 to August 2 from 5.30 to 8pm. There will be no formal opening. A poster at the entrance to the villa (directly opposite the Corinthia Palace Hotel) will discreetly guide visitors in. Anyone interested in the exact address can contact Azzopardi directly at gabriellazzopardi@gmail.com, or message her via Facebook or Instagram on Gabriella Azzopardi Arts – Surreal Dusk.
Looking ahead, Azzopardi plans to continue building her international presence through exhibitions, art magazine features and private commissions.
