Heritage Malta is organising an exhibition of the artist Antoine Camilleri (1922-2005) entitled Pictures In Clay at the Contemporary Hall, National Museum of Fine Arts, Valletta. The exhibition features 24 works by this important artist and serves as an official commemoration on the first anniversary of his death.

Camilleri was one of the main pioneers of post-war modernism in Malta and, throughout his career was responsible, together with others, for several significant innovations in Maltese art. These consisted especially in the use of collage of printed and found objects, besides the introduction of “action painting”. In the later 1960s, Camilleri began to introduce significant textural elements, including added commonplace objects, to his picture surfaces. This naturally developed into his use of fresh Maltese clay as a surface for engraving pictures, which frequently included his own portrait and elements of Maltese landscape, among various other subjects. This particular technique of Camilleri’s is unique in Maltese art and can clearly be linked to works by the artists Alberto Burri and Antoni Tapies. It also has an affinity with contemporary work by Emvin Cremona, and remained Camilleri’s foremost medium for the rest of his life.

The exhibition is made up of works from the museum’s own national collection, from Maltese private collections and loans from the Central Bank of Malta and Maltapost plc. It will run until 4 February 2007 daily except 24, 25 and 31 December, and 1 January 2007 between 9am and 5pm. Admission is free of charge.