“What can we say? Boq – your guess is as good as ours. One thing for sure is that you will not see another fruit-bowl or portrait of the Pope. Good times on canvas, broken skateboards, wood and a collaborated piece by the four artists.”
This is how Chris, James, Steve and Maria chose to introduce their joint art exhibition being held at Joseph’s Bar, at the Mellieha Holiday Complex (the Danish Village) in Mellieha. It was launched on Thursday, 24 August and was intended to run through to mid-September. However, most of the works will now continue to be exhibited until later in the month.
When asked about the choice of name for the exhibition, they all giggled at the memory of a number of other unlikely options they had come up with, before settling for “Boq”. They could not actually find a name, and thought “Boq” ideally represented the attitude they wanted to imply – no expectations! They urge the public to simply go and find out, if they want to know more!
Chris told me that the idea for the collaboration was born with a regular friendly phone call to James when he arrived in Malta on holiday. They had worked on projects together before, but not on an exhibition. They wanted to create a relaxed and cool atmosphere. The four of them agreed that, “much of the stuff here is very monotonous – too much cliché stuff. We wanted to do something different.”
Chris explained that since he and James did a lot of illustrative work, they brought in Steve’s graphic-design-on-canvas approach to complement it. Maria’s work is also very different from all of theirs, and therefore they all joined together in an attempt to shatter the traditional Maltese concept of an exhibition, presenting different styles and approaches together.
The opening night of the exhibition, sponsored by Delicata wineries, was very successful, with at least a hundred people attending. Most of the attendees were young people, and there were also some artists and journalists. All the exhibiting artists sold some of their work.
Everybody, except Chris – who seemed genuinely surprised – expected the turnout, and they said they received extremely positive feedback: “Everybody was amazed!” The artists would like to take this opportunity to give a special thanks to the owner and staff of Joseph’s Bar at the Mellieha Holiday Complex, and to extend a special thanks to Steve’s mum!
As I sat with them in Joseph’s Bar, I could immediately understand exactly what they meant about the alternative factor that pertains to all their art, which is simultaneously very unique and different from that of each others: definitely a very interesting combination!
I asked each of them to explain how they use art as a means of effectively expressing themselves, and what they hoped to achieve as an artist with a possibly influential medium.
James was the first to attempt to explain his perspective. It quickly became apparent that words are not his forté, whereas his paintings are impressive to say the least.
“Colours are of utmost importance to me. In my art there is an element of my background and I often portray what I like. My style reflects my views on what I would like to see, but I also like to entertain myself. I like to think I can get a message across for people to be happier and feel more enlightened – inspire them to reach their soul.
“The subjects depicted in my paintings are actually very diverse – from abstract to music, mainly inspired by funk; from sexual connotations to mind-enhancing experiences like travelling. At the moment I am working on a Valletta project called Urban Revolutions in collaboration with Something Wicked and St James Cavalier. My work will be exhibited at City Gate.
“I’d like to exhibit abroad – canvas, murals, anything that involves painting. I hope to continue progressing, whatever the medium. I want to reach out to people, and tackle issues about Malta, both here and abroad. I also want to make people more aware of the urban culture, and it is often included in my paintings.”
Steve spoke next. He pointed to a canvas depicting letters of the alphabet and splashes of paint, which caught my attention. “Everybody is using art to express something. My work is a manifestation of my interests rolled into one: street graffiti, psychedelia and graphic design. What I do is also a reaction to the Maltese art scene. I aspire to the innovative and alternative because I am tired of mundane exhibitions involving fruit bowls and Mdina scenes.
“I will be doing a degree in graphic design in Scotland next year. I might stay afterwards – we’ll see. At the moment, I am a part-time apprentice while doing a diploma. I like graphic art, and prefer the more organic aspect such as print. My paintings go a step further by putting graphic art on canvas.
“I would love to influence people in a positive way; change the world! If I die before that, I’ll be very sad. To this end I want to use underground art, newspapers and labels, even if it might mean working for free. Money is not the issue.”
Maria expressed her views in a continuous flow of words, secure of her position, smiling as she spoke.
“When I am painting, I am creating a mirror. I am pouring my feelings onto the canvas, and whether people perceive it in the same way as I have expressed it or find something else, it all comes back to me. I use colours and words especially, and like to combine poetry and painting – like Apollinaire. I like to portray the power of women – a little of a political feministic message. And I like portraits. However I am still experimenting.
“When I feel like painting, then I do. I do not want to use it to pay the rent. Another point is that I feel strongly that art is not just painting. I love movies and radio. I run an internet radio channel at a university in Germany. I was also the co-director for a movie that was part of an EU project between Germany and France. I do not like to stay in my own bubble, only expressing myself, but like to also interact with other people. Still, I think if you can plant the seed of thought and emotion in somebody, that is great.”
Chris had patiently waited, in between interruptions, jokes and mimicking each other, until finally it was his turn to tell his story.
“I have an educational background from fine art, portraits, cartoons and abstract – as visual language – to classic 2D animation involving both visual and sound stimuli. I like to bring all of them together, with everything acquired in five years of art schools blended into my own style.
“Sometimes I paint in a traditional manner, other times I go digital. I particularly like story-telling, using visuals, sound and music. When I laugh, I must tell it. For example, Duncan (a friend) once said to me: “You don’t own the house – the cat does.” I have a painting based solely on that concept!”
Chris pointed to it, hanging on the wall a few feet away. It was marked “sold”. It depicted a cat on a table with a large speech bubble coming from it, as if demanding something. The girl at the door held a bowl of food, appearing to wonder how she could serve her furry master-of-the-house. I smiled. It expressed the phrase perfectly.
He continued: “Sometimes I do stuff that is visually intelligent. I try to put some thought into what I do. I like a story, but I really do whatever I feel. Sometimes there is a message, but not always.
“I’d like to stick to film, mainly 2D animation. I am very inspired by skate videos, such as those by skater/director Spike Jones – really very intelligent sort of stuff. Skateboarding sub-culture has an international code, and then there are local particularities, and I find this truly inspiring. I would like to be unpredictable. Sure, it’s nice to surprise the audience, but above all I want to surprise myself!”
Chris and Maria, who live in England and Germany respectively, were on a month’s holiday in Malta when they created the collaborated piece with Steve and James and jointly organised the exhibition. They have already left the island, taking some of their works with them. “I must have them to sell them,” Chris explained. However, several paintings are still exhibited until late September, including most of James’ and Steve’s paintings and a few of Chris’ and Maria’s, which have been sold and so remain exhibited.
Boq? As inexpressive a statement as it is, the exhibition so named is anything but!
Chris Jensen: www.sketchychris. com
James Micallef Grimaud: www.jamesmg.com
Steve Scicluna: www.creative urope.com/stevescicluna
Maria Kotzur: www.amanha. deviantart.com
