FILM

Documentary on Italo disco legacy

Spazju Kreattiv is this evening showing a documentary on Italo disco music, its past and future, through the stories of the original 1980s protagonists and cult DJs, and the voice of a new generation of artists, radio broadcasters and fans ready to carry on the genre’s legacy.

The 2018 documentary features rare and original 1980s footage, live takes and interviews with artists and deejays such as Fred Ventura, Rago & Farina, Flemming Dalum, Steen Gjerulff (Body Electric), The Hacker, DJ Hell, Alexander Robotnick, Scotch, Albert One, Ken Laszlo, Martinelli, P. Lion, Koto, Brian Ice, Fancy, Brand Image, Marcello Catalano, Linda Jo Rizzo, Italove, Surf Dancer, Roberto Turatti, Sandro Codazzi, Daniele Baldelli, Marcello D’Azzurro and I-F.

Italo Disco Legacy will be screened at the Spazju Kreattiv cinema in Valletta at 7.30pm. It will be preceded by a 30-minute DJ set by Volph.

For tickets, visit www.kreattivita.org.

The event is organised by Electronic Music Malta (EMM) and is part of the Circuits and Spazju Kreattiv programmes. EMM is supported by Arts Council Malta.

Anime Festival

The Eden Cinemas in St Julian’s is currently hosting its first-ever Anime Festival, showing feature-length films of some of the most popular anime series of all time, including Dragon Ball Z, Demon Slayer and My Hero Academia.

All films are dubbed in English or are screened in Japanese with English subtitles.

Demon Slayer: The Movie is showing from today until August 30.

For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page and the Eden Cinemas website.

MUSIC

TISBIT

The platform for young Gozitan percussionists known as TISBIT is this evening presenting a concert at Cathedral Square, the Citadel, Victoria.

Michael Camilleri, the mastermind behind this showcase, is also the principal timpani of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and the drummer of The Travellers.

For this event, percussionists from The Clef House will be collaborating with the Big Band Brothers Juniors and two guest singers – Megan May Caruana and Hannah Theuma. The music repertoire will include drum excerpts together with big band pieces.

The concert starts at 8pm. Entrance is free but seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.

OTHER EVENTS

On the Border of Conflict

A series of satellite events are taking place in the run-up to the Malta Mediterranean Literature Festival, which is being held on Friday and Saturday.

Today, James Debono is moderating a discussion between authors Adrian Grima (Malta), Julia Musakovska (Ukraine) and Lamis Saidi (Algeria) at Spazju Kreattiv in Valletta at 7.30pm. Titled On the Border of Conflict, the discussion will tackle how conflict influences a language and its literature.

Prior to the discussion, David Schembri will interview Jacobo Bergareche, the Spanish award winner of the EU Prize for Literature. Entrance is free.

The Malta Mediterranean Literature Festival is organised by Inizjamed. For more information, visit www.inizjamed.org and the event’s Facebook page.

Logos Hope in Grand Harbour

The world’s largest floating bookfair is back in Malta for the second time this summer. It is open to visitors until Sunday, August 28, from 3 to 9pm.

The entrance fee for individuals aged between 13 and 64 is €1, while adults over 65 may enter for free. Children aged 12 and under may also enter the ship for free, as long as they are accompanied by an adult.

There will also be a children’s event titled The Greatest Treasure on Friday between 6.30 and 8pm. 

Lunchtime tours at Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum

Palazzo Falson in Mdina is hosting a series of guided lunchtime tours until the end of August.

The tour highlights objects linked to the Order of St John, but one may also admire the rest of the museum's significant collection that is specifically displayed to capture and reflect the life and taste of Captain Olof Gollcher.

Bookings at a suggested donation of €10 can be made by e-mail on bookings@palazzofalson.com or by calling on 2145 4512. One may also arrive at the museum 10 minutes prior to the tour, which starts at noon.

Gustav Café is open to guests for refreshments on the rooftop terrace of the museum.

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EXHIBITIONS

Ceramic Art Collective

A collective exhibition of ceramic artworks is on at the Cittadella Cultural Centre Hall 2 in Victoria.

Taking part are Mario Sammut, Charles Sammut, Hermine Anne Sammut, Phyllis Camilleri, Daniel Scerri, Joan Haber, Christian Formosa, Paul Scerri, Katrin Formosa, Victor Agius, Chris Saliba, Mariz Cassar, Nadia Haber and Sylvana Magro.

The exhibition comes to a close on Friday, August 26. For more information, visit the Gozo Ceramics Festival Facebook page.

A Healing Journey: Redefining Environmental Challenges

An art exhibition aiming to promote minorities and the environment is open in Victoria.

A Healing Journey: Redefining Environmental Challenges forms part of a project which visual and conceptual artist Mary Rose Saliba is conducting with a group of senior citizens in Gozo named SMART.

The study is envisioned towards the self-discovery of dormant talents, as well as enriching the emotional well-being of minorities and marginalised people to help them integrate and gain their voice in society.

The SMART team’s exhibition features mixed media artworks that include samples of earth, soil, rocks, stone, dried leaves and tree trunks which the group have collected during walks in the countryside as part of the project.

The exhibition is open until August 28 at the Banca Giuratale, Independence Square, Victoria. One may visit from Monday to Friday between 7am and 2.30pm and on weekends and public holidays from 9am to noon.

An Experience of Colour Through Different Mediums

Artist Frank Bonnici and his son, photographer Kris Bonnici, are holding a joint exhibition at Gemelli Framing in Ta' Qali until August 29.

For more information about viewing times, visit the Gemelli Framing Facebook page. 

Learn more about the father-son duo in this Times of Malta interview.

Polymorphs

Claire Farrugia is presenting her first solo exhibition at The Palm Court Lounge at The Phoenicia, Floriana.

Consisting of works on paper, panel and canvas, Polymorphs shows the artist's concern with the fact that the online portrayal of imagery that the public consumes is often far from the truth; most of the time, it is actually a made-up form of reality.

The exhibition focuses on ‘human polymorphism’, with the subjects presented in a natural stance and with a filter using a mobile app.

Curated by Charlene Vella, the exhibition also includes a section featuring the artist’s self-portraits.

Polymorphs is open throughout the month of August. Entrance is free. For more information, visit the exhibition’s Facebook page.

The concept behind the exhibition is better explained in this Times of Malta interview.

Prehistoric pottery making

An exhibition presenting the results of a scientific investigation of materials and techniques used in pottery making during Maltese prehistory is open at the National Museum of Archaeology. The exhibition runs until the end of August. Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 9am to 4.30pm. 

The Gold of Malta

Martine Rigaud-Busuttil is exploring the art of lace-making through a series of oil paintings at the Art Galleries of the Malta Society of Arts in Valletta.

The Gold of Malta features sketches and paintings the artist created during a year she spent with the lace-makers of the society during the time of COVID-19. 

The exhibition runs at Palazzo de La Salle, 219, Republic Street, Valletta, until September 7. Opening hours: Mondays and Fridays: 8am to 7pm; Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays: 8am to noon and 4 to 7pm; and on Saturdays: 8am to 1pm.

For more information, visit the  Malta Society of Arts website and Facebook page.

Bellum in Mundum

After a seven-year hiatus, artist Tonio Mallia is presenting a new series of works that reimagine a world shaken beyond its tipping point, where the tensions between the human and natural world are no longer at play, nor are they creative or life-giving; they have devolved into a tyrannical order in which mankind becomes subject to its own freedoms.

The exhibition, curated by Giulia Privitelli, runs at MUŻA – Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta until September 11. For more information, visit muza.mt.

One may also read the Times of Malta interview with the artist.

Lost in the Ether

Nicole Sciberras Debono is presenting her first solo exhibition at Il-Kamra Ta' Fuq in Mqabba. She brings forward esoteric narratives of a domestic familiarity, with notes on online and para-social relationships, and the reflections of a young woman in a contemporary society.

The exhibition opens today and runs until September 12. Opening hours: Mondays to Saturdays from 6am to noon and on Sundays from 7am to noon. Evening hours are announced weekly on Il-Kamra ta' Fuq Facebook page.

Amelia Saint George works at The Phoenicia

Artist Amelia Saint George is exhibiting a number of her sculptures at The Phoenicia, Floriana.

The sculptures are in clay, bronze and mixed media, and portray animals, which Saint George is particularly well-known for, as well as some humorous sculptures that are more closely associated with her portrait sculptures.

Saint George, who has made Valletta her home, is an established, award-winning contemporary sculptor who has exhibited locally and internationally. She is also the author of several books on diverse subjects and holds sculpting lessons in her Valletta studio.

One may visit the exhibition at The Phoenicia's Deep Nature Spa throughout August and at the hotel's reception area in September.

The Summer Showcase

Bureau Iniala, in collaboration with Marie Gallery 5, is presenting a curated selection of works by a number of local artists.

These are Paul Serri, Trevor Borg, Vince Briffa, Ryan Falzon, Victor Agius, Isabelle Borg, Stefan Spiteri, Sheldon Saliba and Joseph Farrugia.

The showcase aims to be a way for artists and collectors to enjoy works that do not necessarily fit within one collective narrative.

The Summer Showcase closes on September 22. One may visit the exhibition at Bureau Iniala, 37, Treasury Sreet, Valletta, from Monday to Friday between 10am and 4.30pm. For more information and updates, visit the Facebook page of Marie Gallery 5.

Read more about the exhibition in this Times of Malta interview.

Willie Apap – Colour and Light 

A retrospective exhibition of works by Willie Apap (1918-1970), considered one of Malta’s leading exponents of 20th-century art, is currently on at Il-Ħaġar – Heart of Gozo Museum in Victoria.

The 70 works on display feature portraits, landscapes and still-lifes, dancers, human figures, sacred and ethnic works in oils and inks, and are accompanied by a lavish 100-page GEMS # 20 catalogue.

The exhibition, curated by Maria Cassar, runs until October 10. Opening hours are from Monday to Sunday from 9am to 5pm. Entrance is free.

The exhibition is supported by the Malta Tourism Authority and the Gozo Ministry’s Cultural Directorate. For more information, visit the museum’s Facebook page.

Read the Times of Malta interview with the exhibition's curator Maria Cassar here.

whatson@timesofmalta.com