Ahead of the opening of an exciting new exhibition, Ħajja Ħolma, this Friday (May 2) in Victoria’s contemporary art gallery, Arthall, Times 2 catches up with artist Mark Xuereb to find out more.
“For this exhibition, my second solo show and my first at Arthall, I wanted to delve deeper into the theme of reality—what actually makes something “real”? Is reality limited to what can be perceived through the five senses, or is there something more, something beyond our body’s ability to detect? I’ve certainly had dreams that felt just as real as waking life,” says artist Mark Xuerub.
“The title of the exhibition comes from a casual remark a friend once made: il-ħajja ħolma, bro – or life’s a dream, bro. It struck a chord with me—maybe because of the way it sounds, or maybe because, in some way, it’s true.”
“Maltese heritage plays a vital role in my artistic practice, particularly in my work with ceramics. I’m especially fascinated by the clay vessels created by Neolithic communities—how they sourced the clay, prepared, fired, and adorned it. This curiosity has led me to incorporate local natural clays and slips into my own process. Bells, for instance, is made using clay collected from Ramla il-Ħamra. Working with these materials allows me to feel a tangible connection not only to nature, but also to our ancestors who once used the local clay in similar ways. Becasue of this deep fascination with natural clay I went on a month-long artist residency in the Amazonian jungles of Peru back in 2018, learning directly from local indigenous potters the complete cycle of creating a ceramic vessel from scratch. This coming October I am also going on another ceramic-based 3 week artist residency, this time in the Sahara desert in Morocco to learn from the local potters there.”
“My inspiration from the ancient Maltese temple builders goes beyond materials. I’m equally drawn to their decorative motifs—spirals, lines, and other symbols carved, impressed or drawn onto stone and pottery. These patterns, which appear across Neolithic and Paleolithic art, feel to me like a kind of unconscious expression—doodles meant to fill up a space, yet loaded with mystery and intention. A clear example of this influence in my own work is Ancestral, a piece deeply rooted in this local ancient visual language.”
This exhibition will feature more than 20 artworks created specifically for this exhibition (with the exception of one work, an oil painting On Pills & Vegetation which Xuerub based on a dream he had during the pandemic.) The pieces on show include, primarily, a mix of ceramics and oil paintings on canvas, “with a few unexpected pieces scattered in between”. Each work represents a different version of reality as experienced by the artist.
One series of small canvases was created in two-hour sessions over the course of two years. These straightforward plein air paintings depict life and the changing landscape throughout the seasons. Each small canvas shows a scene as Xuereb saw it and they are, he explains, the shared reality we all experience. Other pieces drift into more surreal, dreamlike territory.
Inner Selves 1, 2 and 3 draws on the Christian tradition of the soul and the idea that there is more to us then just mere flesh and bones. Perhaps this is what lies beneath our outward appearances—the true essence of who we are: an ever-shifting, dynamic source of energy, unbound in space and time.
Other works are based on personal reflections, such as Ħobza u Sardina, a quasi-nightmarish vision of the corruption happening all around us. Maltese people used to be renowned for such kindness that the saying “Malta ħanina ħobza u sardina” (Malta gave us bread and sardines) was coined in North Africa in reference to this quality, Xuereb continues. “Is this sense of compassion still felt as strongly today as it was back then?”
“Also, some works ‘sort of pop into existence,’” he adds, “For example, Qed Nara Sew? was meant to be two different sculptures. However, whilst experimenting in the studio, I happened to place them together in the composition they now occupy—and it just clicked. Were they always meant to be one? Maybe chance really does play a role in shaping reality!”
And thus, Ħajja Ħolma offers a glimpse into the different realties experienced by the artist, contrasting what we all see with other versions of reality, perhaps experienced only by the artist himself. In bringing the two sets of work together and blending his realities, Xuereb hopes to create a dialogue.
Mark Xuereb: Ħajja Ħolma runs from May 2 to May 18 at Arthall, 8, Triq Agius de Soldanis, Victoria, Gozo.
