An exhibition of recent figurative works by Luca Indraccolo opens today at Il-Kamra ta’ Fuq in Mqabba.
States of Matter, curated by Melanie Erixon, explores how an image evolves through repeated interpretation. It thus presents oil paintings, drawings and drypoint intaglios that return to the same motifs while shifting medium, scale, format and use of colour.
Rather than depicting literal physical transformation, these variations suggest changing emotional and psychological states, revealing how subtle formal decisions can alter the tone, structure and meaning of a figure.
Reinterpreting images across media
The exhibition grows out of the artist’s working process, which often begins with a small thumbnail sketch and unfolds through multiple stages before reaching a final painting. While this progression might appear linear, many preparatory studies possess a distinct clarity and presence of their own.
In States of Matter, these works are presented not as transitional steps but as autonomous images, each carrying its own visual and emotional weight.
‘Subtle formal decisions can alter the tone, structure and meaning of a figure’
Drawings are explored both in their purest, linear form and in hybrid works that merge drawing and painting, testing how a motif behaves as its materials shift. This approach echoes a long artistic tradition, recalling artists such as James McNeill Whistler and Gustav Klimt, who reinterpreted images across media to expand their expressive potential.
The title reflects an interest in transformation: how an image can move through different forms, materials and moods, while remaining anchored to a single underlying subject.
About the artist
Luca Indraccolo is an Italian-born artist known for his skilful and realistic oil paintings, who specialises in figurative and narrative art.
After working for 15 years as an art director for major advertising companies in different countries, he made the choice to pursue a fine art career as a painter. He first moved to New York to study artistic anatomy for a year, then moved to Florence to study drawing and painting at the Florence Academy of Art, and finally to London where he completed his training at the London Atelier of Representational Art.
His paintings have been exhibited in various galleries and art fairs internationally, including the UK, the US and Malta.
Indraccolo’s work has been published on multiple occasions in the book 40 Portrait Masters, Artists & Illustrators magazine and the Times of Malta.
States of Matter, curated by Melanie Erixon, opens today at 7.30pm and runs until March 15 at Il-Kamra ta’ Fuq, 4, Church Square, Mqabba. Opening hours: Mondays to Saturdays: 6am to noon; Sundays: 7am to noon. For more information, visit the exhibition’s Facebook page.
