Throughout December, until 4 January, St James Cavalier is hosting a number of exhibitions, including Disability Through the Lens: Our Life Stories. This exhibition brings together the work of four prominent photographers alongside the life stories of 24 individuals, and is organised by the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD).
CRPD serves as the national equality body for the disability sector in Malta and Gozo, working to safeguard and promote the rights of persons with disability. In addition to organising conferences and seminars that raise awareness and stimulate public discussion on key issues, this year, CRPD opted for a different approach, that of creating this exhibition as a powerful platform for visibility, representation, and dialogue.
I was immediately intrigued when I was invited to curate this exhibition. Firstly, because I had never worked with any of the four photographers before - René Rossignaud, Therese Debono, Darrin Zammit Lupi, and Matthew Mirabelli - and secondly, because this project offered a very different curatorial experience from the exhibitions I usually work on.
In most exhibitions, the focus naturally rests on the artists: their style, choices, and visual language. Here, that focus shifts. The heart of this exhibition lies with the individuals portrayed, and with the honesty of their presence.
The photographs are neither staged nor shot in controlled studio environments. Instead, the photographers stepped into the everyday spaces of the people they photographed, capturing moments from daily life. Each image offers a window into routines, relationships, joys, challenges, and ways of being that are real, lived, and deeply personal rather than symbolic.
We encounter photographs taken in workplaces, such as Rocco Gauci, pictured as a pastry chef. Others are set in locations that hold particular meaning for the individuals portrayed, including Emily Slater at the National Museum of Archaeology, Matthew Chircop at the skatepark, and Francesco Hili at the Malta National Aquarium.
Beautiful and intimate family moments are also captured throughout the exhibition: Seby Camilleri with his mother; Faith Bartolo Pizzuto in a tender mother-daughter embrace; Dorianne Callus surrounded by her family; Annabelle Xerri at a playground with her daughter; and Ben Vella Grima photographed both with his parents and in affectionate moments with his cat. We also see the now-teenage Matteo Crossey enjoying time with his mother, and Christine Mifsud on a stroll with her husband, accompanied by her guide dog at her side.
We also encounter moments of quiet enjoyment through personal hobbies: Maria Cristina Grech immersed in painting, Samuel Farrugia captured while acting, and Kurt Scerri speeding away on one of his motorbikes.
Others are photographed while engaging in sports they love, such as siblings Annemarie and Matthew Bugeja excelling in gymnastics and football; Maria Gauci caught mid-dance; Julian Bajada during a gym session; Michael Xerri on a stroll with his guide dog; and Philip Gruppetta frozen in a striking bowling pose.
The exhibition also includes a number of portraits. Among them is David Spiteri Gingell, whom I fondly remember as CEO of MITTS (now MITA) during my younger years; Ruth Debono, who has a deep love for the performing arts, captured strolling through a garden; and JeanFred Agius, who enjoys quiet solo outings and photography.
A special mention goes to Rita Vella, portrayed with a beautiful smile. Rita is no longer with us, but she played a key role throughout her extensive career with both KNPD and CRPD.
The selection process for these works, captured over a period of six years by the different artists, was a complex one. This was largely because the exhibition does not focus solely on artistic merit, but on representation and the many lived realities of disability. The spectrum presented includes intellectual, visual, deaf, psychosocial, and physical disabilities. To offer a more comprehensive picture of the current situation in Malta, participants were selected with attention to gender, age, locality, and intersectionality.
The works are printed on Chromalux, a material that lends the photographs an almost ethereal quality. This exhibition marks the first time in Malta that all artworks are presented entirely using Chromalux. Alongside each photograph, the biography of the person portrayed adds further depth. These words, reflections, and lived experiences accompany the images, allowing us to encounter the individuals not as photographic subjects, but as people with histories, relationships, passions, and identities.
Through these stories, a richer understanding emerges, one that moves beyond stereotype, beyond assumption, and beyond any division. This exhibition is an invitation to encounter each person as they are: complex, present, and profoundly human.
This exhibition offers enhanced accessibility for visually impaired visitors through audio description - a specialised practice that translates visual elements into words. This approach allows both visually impaired and sighted audiences to engage more fully with the artworks.
Unlike conventional audio descriptions, the version developed for this exhibition is tailored specifically to the works on display. Presented as a collective, mosaic-style 15-minute narration, it weaves together visual details, emotional cues, and personal stories to create a unified and immersive listening experience. The project was developed in collaboration with the Department of Translation, Terminology and Interpreting Studies at the University of Malta.
But that's not all! On the opening night, part of the celebrations included a concert by pianist Alessia Bonnici and violinist Mikaela Baluyot. The Opening Doors Association presented the spectacular multidisciplinary work Moonlight, co-created by the members and team of their Music Level 2 group. The performance traced a poetic life cycle, from birth to death, guided by a mystical, shapeshifting moonlight embodied in a silver sheet.
The CRPD's advocacy for visibility, equality, and belonging is reflected not through statements, but through lived reality. In this exhibition, the people portrayed are presented as individuals to be truly met and understood.
Under the leadership of Commissioner Rhoda Garland, the CRPD plays a vital role in investigating discrimination on the basis of disability; the Commission also reviews new planning applications to ensure compliance with the Access for All guidelines, contributing to a more inclusive physical environment. In recent years, the Commission has also taken a proactive approach in raising the visibility of persons with disabilities in the media and public sphere, advocating for authentic representation that reflects the diversity of lived experiences.
Their work includes research to inform policymakers and guide national strategies, as well as monitoring Malta's implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as transposed into Maltese law. They also provide Disability Equality Training to foster awareness, respect, and understanding.
Above all, CRPD advocates for the rights of persons with disabilities, promoting a person-centred approach that places people, not systems, at the heart of services, policies, and decision-making.
To conclude, I want to highlight how wonderful it was to work with three incredible people, so dedicated, professional, and endlessly fun: Sandra Borg, Lorraine Attard Pleven, and Lara Calleja - truly a dream team! And a special thanks to the team at St James Cavalier for all their support.
The exhibition is being held in Studio C at St James Cavalier and is open Tuesdays to Fridays from 9am to 9pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 9pm, until 4 January 2026.