As Damian Darmanin’s architecture-inspired art exhibition opens at St James Cavalier, a building redesigned almost 20 years ago by his grandfather, architect Prof. Richard England, the two open up about art, architecture and the close relationship between them that has helped shape Damian’s creative journey so far

Damian, your show, The Kolaz - Ktiro Collection/Buildings in Time, is described as “a global expression of soli­darity, unity, diversity and culture” exploring “globalisation, religion and creativity”. Congratulations on this body of work. I understand that this is your first solo exhibition, how does it feel to see it come to fruition?

I’ve had previous exhibitions, but with other artists and never alone, so this is my first solo show. I’m obviously very proud of the exhibition, but success is a journey, not a destination.

Is this the first time you’re showing work of this nature?

Yes, because I’m also a sculptor. I paint, I do mixed media, graphics; I’m interested in everything. But at this moment in time I feel this is the way.

Can you tell us about your professional background and how you fit your art around your other work?

I’m a financial trader during the day, and at night I work on my art. My girlfriend likes watching TV, but I prefer doing my art in the evenings.

Can you tell us about your artistic background and how you have developed as an artist?

I’ve always been interested in design. I studied in Florence and I was born there as well. It was a part of my tendency to be very orderly. I have everything organised, that’s why you can see a sort of structure in the way I do things. Even in my past works in my old sculptures, it’s real but surreal, it’s virtual but real. 

Architecture is clearly in your blood. In fact, your show is being hosted in one of your grandfather’s own architectural masterpieces, St James Cavalier. Have you ever felt under pressure to live up to his accomplishments?

I grew up in a house that my grandfather designed, so obviously architecture affected my development, but I’ve never been competitive, either with him or anybody else. It’s not the way I am, and I’ve never felt overshadowed by his success. I’ve always said, good for him, you know.

What kind of influence has your grandfather been in your life and in inspiring your interest in architecture?

His art influenced me, and basically my work is an offshoot of his. If you look at it closely,  you can see that it’s a newer version of his art, his castles, but just in a different format, it’s the same thing.

Can you explain your inspiration for these fantastical buildings and how your subject-matter and style have developed?

The interesting concept is that from fragments of real buildings, I am creating unreal edifices. It’s a transformation of reality into virtual reality.

So there is an underlying interest in showing something that isn’t physically possible to construct. Is this the exciting part for you?

I want to turn up the dial on art. I don’t want to see a normal landscape, I want to see a castle. I enjoy landscapes like everyone else does, but let’s fantasise a bit, otherwise it gets boring. 

Can you explain a little about your collage technique. Are these pieces created by hand by gluing pieces to a surface, or digitally using Photoshop?

It’s all done by hand. Photographs are cut out and I just like spending time doing it. I like Photoshop but this type of art gets me away from the computer. I use Photoshop all the time, but for these images I don’t need to.

So these are unique one-off original pieces we are seeing in this show?

No, these are actually lithographs of the originals. The actual collages are at home.

A precise mind and an eye full of structural imagination. Totally fascinating- Daniel Libeskind, architect of the new ‘One World Trade Centre’ at Ground Zero

What would you like the audience to experience when looking at these images?

The message I’d like to convey is that from broken elements, you can still have creativity and beauty.

Do you have any future plans or projects in the pipeline you would like to share with us?

I have another collection of collages ‒ just for publication ‒ coming soon. I’m also working on a book.

Prof. England, you are clearly very proud of Damian and his work. How would you describe the relationship between you?

There has always been a very close bond, in terms of art as well as the grandfather-grandson relationship. Damian was always interested in producing little drawings. He also grew up in a house which I designed, so obviously architecture has always been around him. He was the first-born, so he got certain privileges I suppose. The enthusiastic new arrival!

What part have you played in influencing Damian’s interest in art and architecture?

At the age of six he produced a series of drawings of churches. I thought they were quite impressive for his age and I used them as Christmas cards. Then, in the garden of the house I designed for them in Mġarr, I had specially made for him a ‘castle for Damian’, which was a sculpture about four metres high, and I think that might have influenced him.

After his studies in Florence, he came back and it took a bit of time, but suddenly he came up with these images, which I thought were absolutely amazing. My first reaction was obviously very much a personal sense of pride as a grandfather, so it was in a way subjective, almost an example of nepotism I suppose, since ‘nepos’ comes from the Latin for grandson.

Then with the passage of time I said, one has to step back and look at these things objectively and with a more critical eye, and I think I found a considerable amount of depth and interest in the project, mostly in terms of using a fragment, or a series of fragments, to create a whole.

But even more interesting is the fact that the fragments are reality, while what he actually produces at the end is not reality, but a virtual reality. The fragments come from built architecture, and I sometimes play the game of trying to identify the architect of that particular portion. But the totality at the end is something completely new that doesn’t exist, which becomes extremely interesting.

Of course, the methodology, the collage, started actually in China about 2,000 years ago, but this fell into almost complete disuse, and it was only picked up again much later. Its apex was probably in the 1960s, with architects like Hamilton, Paolozzi, Peter Blake and the famous Sgt Pepper album cover by The Beatles, which was a collage, as well as the Americans and even Warhol himself. You know, all these artists. Then it sort of keeled again. This idea of bringing together fragments extends the sum of the parts and it becomes a completely new reality.

As the architect behind St James Cavalier’s transformation into a national arts centre nearly two decades ago, how does it feel to now be hosting and presenting an exhibition here by your grandson?

What is interesting is that I’ve had an exhibition here, my son Mark had an exhibition here, and now it’s Damian, so its three generations down. And yes, it’s 20 years now, and on the whole it’s worked, I mean, it’s alive, it has blood flowing through its veins. So I think it’s been a successful venture, because in the end, what a building looks like is important, but what it actually does and how it functions is far more important.

What are your hopes for Damian’s artistic career going forward?

There’s a sense of satisfaction, because firstly it’s paternal, and now it’s ‘grand-paternal’, so yes, obviously, I’m very proud of the work he’s done and very pleased, and I think he’ll go very far. That’s apart from being paternalistic, but I try to be objective, so I try to advise him, and he takes the advice. I think he’s a very promising artist.

What do you hope the Maltese public will take away from this exhibition?

That from a fragmented world, you can still build something that is positive and beautiful. In these times of a fragmented Malta perhaps people can read that message.

The Kolaz - Ktiro Collection/Buildings in Time at St James Cavalier, Valletta, ends on January 5.