This year, the Malta Society of Arts (MSA) celebrates 100 years at Palazzo de La Salle with the publication of a book titled Palazzo de La Salle, Genesis & Evolution, a music programme and two exhibitions, the second of which – Fragments of a Legacy: MSA 1923-2023 – runs from September 14 to 23.

Fragments of a Legacy: MSA 1923-2023 commemorates the history of the MSA and its influence on Malta’s cultural sphere over the past 100 years. Drawing on its permanent collection, loans from private collections and varied strategic archival material, the exhibition showcases the society’s contribution to the arts in Malta over the last century and looks ahead at a new chapter.

“The exhibition highlights key moments of interest, excellence, achievement and strife too,” says Gabriel Zammit, the MSA’s events and initiatives officer.

Sala dei Cavalieri

“We’re very excited to bring together the successes of the last century and also to confront the past, reviewing previous decades in light of contemporary sensibilities, so we can look to the future with fresh eyes.”

The MSA has long balanced the opposing schools of conservatism with cutting-edge thinking, fuelled by the artists involved in the society.

“The MSA strongly supported radical thinking in the art world between the 1920s-1960s,” says Zammit, “and yet, it’s fascinating to see how the narrative of the push and pull between these two elements played out.

“For example, in 1943, Anton Inglott, a foremost Maltese modernist, presented a radical painting of The Sacred Heart to the society.

“Stylised and pared-down, it broke the rules of expected presentation at the time because it did not show Jesus’s heart and so it was instead hidden away in the cellars, in the reserve collection. Eight years later, modernist Envin Cremona was commissioned to paint The Sacred Heart with a more classical depiction.”

Anton Inglott’s The Sacred Heart

Similar in many respects, the two paintings will hang together in the exhibition, and it is interesting to compare and contrast them.

“Also, British abstract artist Victor Pasmore, who moved to Malta in the mid-1960s, held his first solo exhibition in Malta in the Palazzo De La Salle,” continues Zammit.

“Hosting his work was a courageous move for the MSA: however, the exhibition was then subtly censored, and his work was rejected for the MSA collection.”

Visitors to Fragments of a Legacy, The Malta Society of Arts, 1923-2023 can see both a catalogue from Pasmore’s show as well as posters from around the same era.

The MSA strongly supported radical thinking in the art world between the 1920s-1960s

Over five rooms, the exhibition leads visitors step-by-step back through time. The first gallery presents the most recent history and a recent restoration project which has transformed the palazzo into a leading Valletta venue.

Emvin Cremona’s The Sacred Heart

Here, visitors can see, for example, abstract work by the late artist Isabelle Borg (1959-2010) alongside installations by contemporary artists, such as Aaron Bezzina (which draws on a recent three-year project involving 16 international artists which was initiated by the MSA). Look out too for the wire and plastic sculpture by Matthew Attard who will be representing Malta in next year’s Venice Biennale. “We’re very excited to be including his work in the exhibition,” says Zammit.  

Other galleries focus on the awards given by the MSA over the years, with art on show by award-winners including the spiritual modernist Josef Kalleya; the MSA’s work to promote Maltese artists on the international art scene, in the years after independence; and the development of modern art in Malta.

The final room, the lavish Rococo Knight’s Hall, has a series of paintings by Domenico Micallef (1906-1933) showing several grand masters – these were the first artworks commissioned when the MSA made the palazzo its home in 1923 and it’s unusual to see early 20th-century depictions of these historical figures.  The room is thought to have been added to the palace in 1732 by the brothers de La Salle to commemorate the de La Salle family and its connection with the Knights of the Order of St John.

The poster of a Victor Pasmore 1970 exhibition

Previously, little was known of the history of the palace and so it is exciting to see the publication of Palazzo de La Salle, Genesis & Evolution, which brings together the research undertaken ahead of all the 100-year celebrations and explores the history of the building itself, from its origins and architecture to recent discoveries and new insights. As 15 contributors shed light on four centuries of the palace’s life, this contemporary overview also includes insights on the MSA, its philosophy, its work as the beating heart of Maltese arts and their continued development.

Fragments of a Legacy MSA 1923-2023 runs from September 14 to 23 at MSA, Palazzo de la Salle, 219 Republic St, Valletta. Palazzo de La Salle, Genesis & Evolution is available from www.midseabooks.com. For more on the MSA and centenary event, visit www.artsmalta.org.