A US impressionist artist based in Gozo is currently exhibiting at the Phoenicia Hotel, in Floriana as part of an artist-in-residence programme.

Heritage, which features various paintings of “life and landscapes” painted en plein air, reflects her love for the island while raising awareness on the environment and human activity and the delicate balance required to preserve our natural heritage.

Norma Cili’s ‘relationship’ with Gozo started several years ago when she and her husband were looking for an English-speaking place to retire that had a Mediterranean climate similar to their home, California.

Gozo is more than scenic beauty and fantastic weather. The community spirit among the people is unique- Norma Cili

“We came to Gozo and Malta to see if we could picture ourselves living here. When we got to Gozo, we knew intuitively within a couple of days that we had found the right place. We walked into a real estate office on that first visit and found a farmhouse that we fell in love with. We went back to America, sold our house and were back in Gozo within the year. We have not looked back since,” Cili says.

She adds that Gozo is very different to the US, yet, “it is beautiful like California but in a different way”. 

“The people have a real warmth to their nature. We wanted more than just beautiful scenery which is abundant in the American West. Gozo is more than scenic beauty and fantastic weather. The community spirit among the people is unique. The culture, history, traditions, music and people all combine to make it a unique place to live. I feel very privileged to have received such a warm welcome to my home in Xagħra.”

Dwejra Aerial View

Cili, who has exhibited in the US, Ireland, France and Malta, studied art in the US and the EU under high-profile tutors whose work she admires either because of their impressionistic style or their use of colour and light. Among these is Dave Russo, a former student of Spanish master Picasso.

“He used to tell a story on when he was a young student at Picasso’s home in Paris. The great master didn’t like his work and painted a big black ‘X’ over his paintings. Each day, Dave would try to improve and Picasso would paint another big black ‘X’ over his work. This went on at the end of each day for several weeks until, one day, 

Picasso didn’t paint the ‘X’,” she recounts. 

“Dave learned focus, persistence and to strive for perfection from Picasso and kept a painting in his California studio with a large black X painted over it as a reminder. Years later, when he was teaching art, this persistence learned from Picasso was carried forward to Dave’s lessons as he insisted that his students paint the same scene of rocks and water over and over and over again until they had it right.”

Light on the Onion Field

Cili also draws inspiration from contemporary artists Camille Przewodek, Karl Dempwolf, impressionists Anastasia Dukhanina and Antonin Passemard and others such as the late Pierre Bonnard and Johann Dijkstra. 

Her favourite medium is oil and she uses the impasto technique, where paint is laid in very thick layers, usually thick enough that the brush strokes are visible. When dry, impasto provides texture.

“Having an abundance of paint on the canvas allows one to layer and carve into it to create more definition. For me, it is about laying down one colour note next to another, always comparing to the whole of the scene. I am not trying to be so specific but suggestive, letting the viewer fill in the detail. This aspect for any painting makes it something you want to look at repeatedly for the brain loves filling in what has only been suggested,” she says.

In recent years, she branched out to gouache, which she used for her depiction of farmers, cactus, an onion field and hay bales, among other works, at the Phoenicia exhibition.

“I love the soft, velvety look and richness that gouache provides,” she points out.

One of her most cherished paintings on display is Dwerja Aerial View for the “paint mixing on the canvas and both the light and shadows that were captured in vivid colours”. 

“Many brush strokes on the painting hold a collection of colour and not a single colour. This makes a painting more interesting and creates more depth,” she notes.

There’s a story behind each painting, with each one reminding her of the events of the day or how she managed to capture the scene in front of her, the artists explains.

For example, Ta’ Pinu reminds her of a “very windy, dramatic day” where she often had to take shelter in her car. She notes that the painting has “a moodiness about it” that comes through painting the backside of the building that is usually in the shade, as opposed to the brightness one sees from the front view.

Norma Cili painting en plein air.

“As an impressionist, I strive to get a feeling of a place into my paintings,” she says. 

Another painting, Harbour Activities at Mġarr, depicts several goings-on in the harbour on a particular day. 

“It was just after the storms had broken the fish farm pens in Malta and the word was out that a shoal of escaped awrat had swum into the harbour. There were a lot of fishermen with fishing rods in the marina catching their supper for the evening,” Cili recalls.

“The works on the harbour had just started and a large crane was dredging. The ferries were arriving and departing every few minutes adding to the scene. In the middle of all of this activity, a horseman arrived with his neighing horses who cooled off with a refreshing swim in the aquamarine water. It was a scene like no other I have painted.”

A painting of the Phoenicia lounge Cili did during one of the Meet the Artist sessions.

Cili’s exhibition at the Palm Court Lounge at the Phoenicia Hotel runs until the end of the month. She will be on site on a number of Meet the Artist sessions. For more details, visit the Phoenicia’s Facebook page and www.normacili.com.