Essay

Ganutell is a traditional Maltese craft which is used to make artificial flowers by only using some wire, thread and beads. This type of design came to Malta between the 18^th and 19^th century. The Ganutell came to our islands from the mainland of Europe such as Italy, in fact the word Ganutell derived from the Sicilian word ‘Cannatiglio’

    Artificial flower in Ganutell

In the mid-twentieth century most of the Maltese population did not quite know much about this wonderful craft which is Ganutell, such that only a few people had mastered the true art of Ganutell. This craft has been carried down by word of mouth through generations so that it would never get lost.

                                                                                                   

Ganutell before was practiced mostly in monasteries by nuns and monks even though this craft was mostly popular with women. The Knights of St. John used to make nuns and monks produce mounts of Ganutell to be given as gifts to popes, and other Royalties. Ganutell before was also used as a decoration for churches, or statues or as home décor. Nowadays its used in more various situations such as in weddings for the bride’s bouquet, tiaras, accessories etc.

Bozza

After the end of world war 2 sadly Ganutell was coming to an end because of all the destruction caused by the war, but in the late Nineties this craft sought a sudden revival.

To create Ganutell one needs Magħżel/Spindle, Thread (Rayon floss or Satin), Bentnose Pliers, Copper Core Wires, Beads Cutter, Pliers, Pearls, Floral Tape and Boul lion. To make Ganutell you would first need to Spin Rayon floss with a wire on a wooden spindle, once the thread is prepared petals for the flowers are worked, the flowers could be trimmed with zig-zag or in twisted wire, or decorated with colorful glass beads, after a required amount of flowers are done, the Ganutell is than mounted.

Ganutell Mounted in a frame

Ganutell was usually mounted either by putting it inside a glass tube which was called a ‘Bozza’ or put inside a frame. When Ganutell was put inside a frame, this was usually accompanied with a painting of a religious figure such as Mother Mary or Jesus. Ganutell inside a ‘Bozza’ usually was accompanied with another ‘Bozza’ and some type of small furniture to go in between the two ‘Bozza’. 

 In my opinion Ganutell is a wonderful craft, since if done correctly and with patience it produces magnificent results, also Ganutell could be done in a lot of different styles such as mentioned above it could be done into an accessory, hair accessory, decoration for a home or appartments etc.

The Luzzu is one of the biggest boats in the island. This boat was used to carry merchandise around the Maltese and Gozo shores. The word ‘Luzzu’ derives from the Sicilian word ‘Guzzu’. The luzzu is one of the Maltese culture and is featured on old Maltese lira notes. 

The design of the Luzzu is said to date back to the Phoenician times. This design stayed because its shape is very steady at sea and also stays stable in bad seas. The Luzzu before used to be equipped with sails but nowadays these boats are usually found with motors instead.  The ‘Luzzu’ is made from ash wood and red       

wood, the paint used previously was tar. The Luzzu is usually seen with the colors yellow, red, green and blue but there are also different color schemes nowadays.                                                                                                      

One might notice that on the front of a Luzzu there are a pair of eyes, these are said to be coming from an ancient Phoenician custom which is referred to as the ‘Eye of Horus’ or ‘Eye of Osiris’. These eyes were added to the boats as protection against bad weather or rough seas.

Eye of Osiris or Horus

A Kajik is very similar to a Luzzu but has a more rectangular shape and these boats usually come in smaller sizes than a Luzzu. Gozo Boats are also similar to a Luzzu, but instead of being smaller, these boats are larger in size. Also Gozo boats were used as means of transport from Malta to Gozo instead of fishing.

The Luzzu is indeed a nice site to look at while near a sea village such as Marsaxlokk, Wied iz-Zurrieq, Marsascala, St Pauls bay and many others. The Luzzu nowadays is not only being used as means of fishing but also as a tourist attraction as these boats take tourists on ours around the Maltese islands.

In my Opinion the Luzzu is a wonderful Maltese boat as it is only seen on the Maltese islands with such beautiful colors that complement each other well.

References: 

Ganutell:

Bead and Wire Flowers

Ganutell(Online)

Link: http://beadandwireflowers.com/

Beads and Handworks

Ganutell (Online)

Link: http://www.beadsky.com/ganutell.php?ln=en

Wikipedia 

Ganutell (Online)

Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganutell

Luzzu: 

Wikipedia

Luzzu (Online)

Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luzzu

Maltese History and Heritage

Luzzu (Online)

Link: https://vassallohistory.wordpress.com/fishing-in-malta/

Malta Bulb

Luzzu (Onlin) 

Link: http://www.maltabulb.com/luzzu.html

Design (Ms. Abela)

On the 29th of October I went to a Design shop where there are a lot of objects which have unique designs thus separating them from everyday objects which are plain.

On the picture on the left one can see a modern looking cushion which creates a sense of design and excitement to the plain chair. I would surely use it for a chair which appears to be plain looking to create more excitement to a home.

On this picture one can see a plain looking ladder, but with a bit of accessories as you can see on the picture it turned into a modern looking design were one can store objects in it such as books, pencils or pens, etc.

Once again a modern design is used. This vase has bits of it sticking out to create texture to the design and also a contrast between the brown and black is used to attract and hold the viewers' attention.

In this picture one can see an interesting design were you would be attracted to the object instantly by the way the design of the bowl is. It would ceraintl go with any type of style be it modern or vintage as the bowl has both a modern and vintage feel to it.

The background of this picture makes the bed look less plain and makes it stick out more since the bed is mostly white therefore a contrast is created. This type of background would go with anything as it has both light and dark colours in it.
















Art Nouveau

·       

Dragonfly Table by Emile Galle 

 Art Nouveau started in Belgium and was mostly popular between the 1890’s and 1910.Art Nouveau was inspired by ‘The Arts and Crafts Movement’, which was Developments in wrought iron works. This movement was also an attempt to      create a new style without any classical association or historicism. This style also sought simpler forms of nature rather than complicated deigns in furniture. This type of style could be either geometric or organic. Some Characteristics of Art Nouveau are the whip lash curves, the absence of straight lines or right angles, stylized forms with

curves and shapes, and designs inspired by animals, insects, birds, swans, dragonflies, peacocks and swallows. Some influences of Art         Nouveau were arts and crafts, rococo(France), Celtic Art, Japanese Art, Egyptian Art and Gothic Revival. Art Nouveau although is an international style it had     different names for different countries such as Art nouveau in Britain and        Glasgow. Art Nouveau/Modern style in France. Sezessionstil in Vienna, Austria. ‘Jugendstil’ in Germany (meaning young style). Stile Liberty in Italy. Modernista in Spain.

 In America Art Nouveau was considered to form part of the Arts and Crafts Movement considering it was inspired by this movement. The style went out of fashion after it gave way to Art Deco in the 1920s, but it experienced a popular    revival in the 1960s, and it is now seen as an important predecessor of modernism.

In these both furniture pieces one can see a great influence from the insect ‘dragonfly’ especially in the ‘Dragonfly Table’ By Emile Galle. A wooden material is used since at that time wood was mostly used for a type of style like this. Although these two pieces of furniture were influenced by the same style they are both hugely different not only because one is bigger than the other but also one is made with a more traditional way that the other.

Desk and Chair by Hector Guimrad

Sources:

Wikipedia:
Art Nouveau (Online)
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Nouveau

                                                                                         

Bauhaus

Bauhaus was founded in 1919 in the city of Weimar by a German architect Walter Gropius (1883-1969). Bauhaus was a form of modern style with German origins, its aim was to train artists for industrial production and to reimagine the material world to reflect the unity of all type of arts. Gropius developed a craft-based curriculum that could make artisans and designers create objects fit for this new style of living. Bauhaus combined both fine arts and design elements in education. The school commenced with its first course that pulled students in study of materials and colour theory. This course was normally taught by visual artists such as Paul Klee (1987.455.16), Vasily Kandinsky (1866–1944), and Josef Albers.

The Bauhaus style became one of the most influential styles in modern design, modernist architecture and art, design and architecture education. Bauhaus also had an influence on developments in art, architecture, graphic design, interior design, industrial design and typography.

Cesca chair BS4  by:  Marcel Breuer

The School existed in 3 German cities which where Weimar from 1919-1925, Dessau from 1925-1932 and Berlin from 1932-1933.The school was then closed due to the rule of the Nazi, but even thou the school closed, it’s staff continued to spread its knowledge as they left Germany and emigrated all over the world. Due to changes of places and leadership constant techniques, instructors, etc. changed such as the pottery shop was ended when the school moved from Weimar to Dessau also when Mies can der Rohe took over the Bauhaus school in the 1930’s he changed the school to a private school and did not allow any follower of Hannes Meyer was not allowed to attend this school.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

In the two furniture pieces although they are both chair, one look more comfortable than the other since one of them has its seat straight unlike the one which is built at an angle and is shorter in height.

                                            Wassily Chair by: Marcel Breuer 

Sources:

Wikipedia

Bauhaus (Online)

Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bauhaus

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art

Bauhaus (Online)
Link: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/bauh/hd_bauh.htm

Art (Dr. Caruana)

Title: Kristu Rebah l-Mewt

Artist: Antoine Camilleri

Date: 1990

Medium: Glass on wood

Dimensions: 52X80cms

Venue: St. James Cavalier, Valletta Malta

Antoine Camilleri (1922-2005) who was a very known artist in Malta liked to draw a lot of Abstract art. In this painting 'Kristu rebah l-mewt'  Antoine Camilleri uses a cold color scheme (blue and purple) to make the viewer feel sympathy towards Christ. Antoine Camilleri makes use of elements and principles on this painting mainly on the body of Christ to give a sense of importance on him.This painting gives a sense of sadness because of the colors which Antoine Camilleri uses. 

Title: Wild Horses

Artist: Antoine Camilleri

Date: Unknown

Medium:Oil on Board

Dimensions: 73X115 cms

Venue: St. James Cavalier, Valletta Malta

In this painting once again cold colors are used. The painting shows a sense of movement in it making it look more interesting. Since one horse is painted black and another white, contrast is created, Camilleri could have done this to represent something, such as the yin yang which represents the balance between two objects such as light and darkness. This piece gives out a peaceful scenario because of the techniques and colors used by the artist.

Title: Winter Portrait

Artist: Antoine Camilleri

Date: 1960

Medium:Mixed Media on board

Dimensions: 124X91 cms

Venue: St. James Cavalier, Valletta Malta

In this portrait Camilleri draws a man which might be a self-portrait in the winter. A lot of cold colors are used since it was in winter, the man in the painting doesn't have a lot of detail and the colors were dull unlike the window next to him which shows more bright colors , this gives less importance to the man thus directing the viewers attention to the window rather than the man. This painting shows a sense of sadness because of the colors used.

Title: Girl In Blue Dress

Artist: Antoine Camilleri

Date: unknown

Medium:Oil on Cardboard

Dimensions: 26X40 cms

Venue: St. James Cavalier, Valletta Malta

Unlike other paintings of Antoine Camilleri this piece has more detail in it rather than being drawn in an abstract way. The painting has a mixture of cold and warm colors, the dress and hair on the girl have texture in them making it look more realistic and the viewer would direct their attention on the girl rather than the background. This painting gives a sense of  happiness since children are associated with happiness, energy etc.

Title: The Kiss

Artist: Antoine Camilleri

Date:1960/2000

Medium: Oil on Board

Dimensions: 130X98 cms

Venue: St. James Cavalier, Valletta Malta

Once again Antoine Camilleri paints in an abstract way.Unlike other paintings Antoine Camilleri makes made use of warm colors. A lot of elements and principles are used in this piece making it look  more interesting thus attracting or keeping the viewers attention. This painting shows  a sign of happiness and excitement since the colors used are bright. 

Title: Riminexxenzi mill-passat (Reminiscence form the past)
Artist:Stephen Grima
Date: 2013
Medium: oil, wood, metal and ceramic on Canvas
Dimensions: 95X57 cm
Venue: Skyparks




In this art piece Stephen Grima captures the amazing scenery of Malta, this shows the 'Hagar Qim' temples. In this work of art Grima uses a bright colour scheme to attract the viewe more to the piece and also to show a happy atmosphere. 

Title: Fil- Qilla Tal-Mewg
Artist:Stephen Grima
Date: 2009
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 100X115cm
Venue: Skyparks











In this piece of work once again by Stephen Grima, the artist captures two boats and a bird which looks like a seagull in the roughness of the sea. One can also notice that on the boats sail there is written 'MLT' which is short for Malta, this could show the great love the artist has for his country as he paints a lot of Maltese scenarios. 





Symbolism 

                                                                                                

'The Scream' by Edvard Munch

Symbolism started towards the end of the 19^th century, it first started in France and later spread in all of Europe. Symbolism was created at a time of prosperity and modernity in fact symbolism mostly uses line, colour and firm in its works. This type of style sadly lasted until world war 1 which was between 1914 and 1918. Symbolism also emphasised on the emotions, feelings, ideas and subjectivity of the artist rather than realism thus symbolism mostly focused on imagination and ideas such as mythical creatures (ex. Angles, Demons, Monsters etc.). Symbolism established what would become the most popular themes in Symbolist art such as love, fear, anguish, death and unrequited desire. At that time symbolism was not that 

                                                                                          

popular since in that era realism was mostly popular but as time passed this style was starting to be more appreciated. In an article on Paul Gauguin published in 1891, Albert Aurier gave a definition for symbolism, describing it as the subjective vision of an artist expressed through a simplified and non-naturalistic style. However, the groundwork for pictorial Symbolism was laid as early as the 1870s by an older generation of artists such as Gustave Moreau (1826–1898) In Scandinavia due to political change and an increase in international approach, art was also affected such as a shift from Germanic tradition to French inspiration. At the end of the 19th century French realism and impressionism remained a great influence on Britain and the United States, such that some American artists also traveled to Europe to study certain art styles.

In the painting ‘The Scream’ by Edvard Much one can see a figure of what appears to be a man with elongated hands on the side of his head. In this art work a sense of movement is created due to how the lines are drawn creating a certain flow, whilst in the painting ‘Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I’ by Gustav Klimt we see a huge difference although it is painted in the same style, the woman’s face and hands are painted in a realistic way as well as the dress she is wearing, but the background of the painting doesn’t hold a lot of detail as to direct the viewers’ attention to the figure rather than the background.

Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I by Gustav Klimt 

Sources:

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art:
Symbolism (Online)
Link: http://www.theartstory.org/movement-symbolism.htm

The Art Story Modern Art Inight
Symbolism (Online)

Link: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/symb/hd_symb.htm

                                               

Cubism 

 'Weeping Woman' by Pablo Picasso

Cubism was one of the most influential art styles of the 20th century. Cubism started at a point in time were artists felt that the illusion of space and mass became less important. Artists understanding on art was change by influences from non-western art which resulted in artists moving away from Naturalism and Beauty. Cubism started from two very important artists which are Pablo Picasso(1881-1973) and Georges Braque (1882-1963) in Paris between 1907 and 1914 but later on other artist joined in this movement some of which are Jean Metzinger, Albert Gleizes, Robert Delaunay, Henri Le Fauconnier, Fernand Léger and Juan Gris These two artist’s subjects in painting were mainly taken from cafes in Paris such as still life’s of objects and portraits of people seen in a café. A French art critic named Louis Vauxcelles invented the term Cubism after seeing Landscapes drawn by an artist called Braqua which he painted in 1908.This type of style normally has a limited range of colours in a painting and concentrates on the form of different viewpoints. In Cubism objects are analysed and broken up to resemble an abstract form, also instead of painting an object from one viewpoint, an artist depicts the object from several sides to show 3-dimensionality and represent the object in a greater context.  Such innovations in Cubism involved lettering which are a series of words written in different styles of Collages which are a mixture of different cut outs stuck together to form an image or phrase. Cubism had spread rapidly worldwide. In France, cubism developed a lot of styles such as Orphism, abstract art and purism, whilst in other countries it developed Futurism, Suprematism, Dada. Constructivism and De Stijl. Futurism and Cubism are similar due to the mixture between the past and the present, such has the representation of a subject depicted in different views in the same time. All these movements are linked together because of the geometric forms, and the association of modern life.

Source: 

Wikpedia:
Cubism (Online)
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubism

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art:
Cubism (Online)
Link:http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cube/hd_cube.htm