Authors: Lino Borg, Joseph Paul Cassar
ISBN: 9789995702793
Hardback

This book is the first comprehensive study on the art and life of Maltese artist George Fenech. It traces and analyses his art from its humble beginnings painting at his parents’ home in Mellieħa, then starting to attend the Malta Government School of Art in Valletta, moving to the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome, and his eventual return to Malta and setting up his own studio.

The roles of George Fenech as a family man, as well as a teacher of art, are studied within the broader perspective of how these had a bearing on his artistic development. The book focuses on all genres that the artist painted: mainly still-lifes, portraits, landscapes, group compositions, folklore, religious as well as printing and stamp design.

George Fenech sought to invest meaning into his paintings through colour and compositional devices. The colour is organised in vibrant masses that he orchestrated to reveal the relation between the human figure and the land, or the sea in producing a cohesive painting. Whether it is the human figure, simple objects or the landscape, George Fenech made it a point to remain true to himself and his experiences as an artist. This publication brings to light several unpublished works grouped together for a deeper understanding and appreciation of George Fenech’s art and life.

The set of two stamps released by the Malta Post Office on 5 July, 1977, is the seventh in the well known “Europa” series. Two Maltese landscapes are featured, “Ta’ l-Isperanza” on the 7c and “Is-Salini” on the 20c.

The artist painted the two landscapes from nature specially for this set. The bridge shown on the 7c stamp spans a green valley in Mosta. The church and dome in the background are typical of the many village chapels in Malta. The luzzu on the 20 stamp is a most colourful and popular fishing boat and is shown here near the salt pans, from which the area derived its name.