The exhibition Decadence, Now was set up as part of the City of Art series of events that unfolded in the month of May at Palazzo De La Salle, in Valletta.

The captivating exhibition was unfortunately only open for 19 days. A series of three salon concerts with local and international artists performing every weekend was held throughout the exhibition’s duration in the adjacent concert hall, continuing to reflect the project’s research and new method.

The theme was the Decadent era, a period that marked the beginning of a different world, one that happened to emerge when absinthe – the mind-altering substance that was used and abused – rose to great popularity, particularly in Paris among artists and writers.

Thirty, 2023, by Andrew Borg Wirth. Digital print on glass. City of Art Collection.

Decadence in itself signifies something that is in decline, or in decay, invoking perhaps images of death. Decadence also signifies self-indulgence, hedonism and extravagance. The illogical. This was the main interest of the artists who formed part of this movement.

The term was coined in France in the mid-19th century specifically to describe texts by writers like Charles Baudelaire and it is, therefore, apt that the exhibition opens with a poem by Baudelaire himself.

Head on a Plate, 2023, by Michael Zerafa. Silk, cotton, viscose, steel, wood, 24-carat gold, glass, LED lighting. City of Art Collection

The Decadent era was one that saw artists react to the industrial movement and who found a sense of uninhibitedness and experimentation. This sparked the “art for art’s sake” ideal rather than the production of art that reflected proper morals; instead, it captured a new energy of aestheticism that very much hinged on sensual beauty.

The exhibition, curated by Andrew Borg Wirth, consists of six sections, each with a theme related to the Decadent movement that set out to capture the spirit of the age, or the zeitgeist, as often featured throughout the exhibition.

The five halls at the Malta Society of Arts were transformed into six spaces by introducing purposely built and beautifully designed panels which also methodically house and present the exhibits that are revealing of the spirit of the age, that is, roughly from the mid-19th to the early 20th century.

Understanding the six themes unlocks the meaning of each room. Decadence is death, desire, drama, art for art’s sake, dance and drunkenness.

The Decadent era was one that saw artists react to the industrial movement and who found a sense of uninhibitedness and experimentation

The female and even the femme fatale featured prominently in this exhibition. The female featured as exotic, sensual, dangerous, drunk. She was death. She was Giuseppe Calì’s haunting female martyr floating in the sea and his nude woman carried by the sea. She was Salome from the New Testament who requested to have St John beheaded.

For Its Sake, 2023, by Maria Theuma. Synthetic hair, human hair, plumes, viscose, microfibre, wood, and other materials. City of Art Collection

She was Marchesa Luisa Casati as she features in portraits by Man Ray (as muse, patron and self-proclaimed work of art). She was Wildness Tamed by Beauty, as one of the paintings is actually titled, that is, Otto Hessler’s (1858-1923) 1911 painting of a nude woman in a lush setting who is only lightly veiled and seemingly in ecstasy and who serves as the personification of beauty who holds a wild cat on a leash, as a man looks on.

However, the female also featured as the local doyenne of Maltese Belle Époque society, Mary Frances Carmen Sciberras d’Amico-Inguanez. And, again, indirectly through Maria Theuma’s reactive artwork titled For Its Sake clearly and cleverly inspired by the Pèl and Ploma Catalan journal, one of which from 1900 was exhibited in the Spanish room.

Thirty, 2023, by Andrew Borg Wirth. City of Art Collection

The exhibition also took you on a journey to France, Austria, Belgium, Italy and Paris in particular, even with the influence of Japonisme that was present in Paris.

The exhibition was varied. It was one of paintings and objets d’art such as garments, fans and gloves, opera librettos and opera glasses, absinthe spoons and installations made from hair and feathers and much more. But not just.

The exhibition-goers’ experience was heightened by poetry and the literature that accompanied each room that explained its raison d’être but also that relating to each artwork. It was further enhanced by illustrations that were created by Rebecca Bonaci.

What made this exhibition distinct to any other exhibition of artefacts was the inclusion of four installations created by Borg Wirth, Luke Azzopardi, Michael Zerafa and Maria Theuma, each of whom provided a contemporary response or dialogue with the Decadent Age with each being engaging in concept, as well as in execution.

Head on a Plate, 2023, by Michael Zerafa.

The team certainly managed to fulfil what they set out to achieve, that is, “to fuel a whole new wave of contemporary decadence in visual culture”.

It is clear that this ambitious project took a lot of time and effort that was reflected not only in the quality of the exhibits and display but also in the attention to detail. It was made possible through a series of collaborations with museums from across Malta and Europe via their respective embassies which really elevated the significance and relevance of this exhibition.

Decadence, Now was open until May 31 at the Malta Society of Arts, Palazzo de la Salle, Valletta. Charlene Vella is a senior lecturer in art history in the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Malta.