Here is my latest painting. The fortifications of Valletta, built by the Knights Hospitallers, are formidable. The height of the walls are about 60 metres at this point also called the Upper Barracca. There used to be a ‘lift’, that transported people from the sea level to the top, which was dismantled in the 70′s. A new modern escalator is being built for the convenience of cruise liner tourists.

Fortifications and Fosse of Valletta, built by the Knights Hospitallers of St John

I enjoyed particularly putting in different textures to sky and sea, vegetation, hewn rock, fortifications and buildings, although when sketching with ink the overall effect of texture is diminished because of the greyscale tones added to show light and shade.

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One is met with a brilliant mosaic of colour which is superficially reminiscent of the pointillism practiced by a Seurat and or Signac. But Winston’s work is based on other than the scientific thoroughness of these two artists. Indeed, his brush strokes are freely if methodically applied, more in the spirit of a Matisse or, more obviously (in terms of the composition of the landscapes more particularly), of a van Gogh; albeit minus the dramatic intensity and tragic features of the latter’s paintings.

Winston’s work, in fact, is far from tragic, it reveals rather his joy in exploring the subject which captures his fascination, and which he does meticulously and with an eye for detail. Being meticulous in the preparation and execution of a work ensures a harmonious composition at the same time as it detracts from a spontaneity of treatment. Spontaneity is not, however, what Winston is after or what he feels comfortable with; accurate representation is still an integral part of his work which is, therefore, carefully planned. So much appears from the fact that the forms in the painting are contained by an initial drawing separating them clearly from each other, and from the studied, careful, and tight application of the brushstrokes. In fact, he uses small tight strokes rather than broad sweeps of the brush, carefully and expertly building his painting layer upon layer, searching for his effects as he proceeds. His canvas thus becomes an intermediate object between his searching eye and a subject that presents a potential problem for his studied approach, namely that it is always elusive if it is painted from the real, because the real is in infinitely variable flux.

One obvious and well-used way to fix the subject, the particular landscape or townscape, or other object, that may have struck an artist and decided him to paint it, to capture it in a moment, to freeze it in time, is by capturing it in a photograph. And this method is one Winston often uses. Otherwise, working directly from the subject, one needs to finish a work at one sitting, and this is contrary to meticulous exploration, which requires time. On the other hand, the subjective symbiosis of the artist with the object that is the spirit of impressionism is lost without this immediacy, and the work becomes more impersonal – the exploration of the subject rather than the self. This is, I think how his work should be considered, and where he is most successful.

Kenneth Wain

May 2010

This year I will be retiring from work and my colleagues at the Education eLearning Centre came up with the idea of organising an exhibition of my works instead of the usual farewell party.

It has been a hectic 2 months putting the finishing touches to the paintings. My brother was a great help in preparing the frames for most of the pictures.

Profs Kenneth Wain visited my studio and was so kind as to write a critique on my works.

The exhibition will be open for the public at the Art Academy, Mosta, from the 5th to the 18th June.

The ‘salini’ (salt pans) extend to Wied l-Ghasri – facing the open sea they are filled by the waves which are often rough in winter. The salini are filled manually where the waves do not reach and the salt is harvested during the hot summer evenings.