mcast hnd fine art (2nd year)
DESCRIPTION
The MCAST Institute of Art and Design is holding the 2014 End of Year Exhibition. This event is aimed at promoting and showcasing students' works of different courses and disciplines. The Higher National Diploma Students in Fine Art (2nd Year) have transformed their Fine Art studio into a contemporary exhibiting space, with engaging artworks reflecting the stylistic sensibilities and artistic identities of the students. The HND Fine Art Catalogue is an elegant collection of the students' works coupled with comprehensive information in order to provide the public with a further layer of meaning.TRANSCRIPT
My current artwork illustrates metaphors of psychological reflection. This is reflected through paintings of subjects closer to me. In my work I tend to question my identity, sexuality and existence. In fact, my subjects evoke a quiet stillness of emotion with a connection to one’s own personal surroundings. Through these ambiguous subjects, the viewer is encouraged to question the identity of the person. The work embraces vulnerability through raw emotions and sensitive brushstrokes. I am interested in portraying truth, and genuine emotion. The use of colour embraces translucency and a pure honesty which is watered down, dirty and somber. These capture the absolute frustration of that timeframe. Through my artwork I intend to evoke a connection with the viewer, a feeling of oneness that will leave you wondering how the story will unfold.
Chiara Monterosso
My work explores the relationship between the inner and outer beauty of every individual. By expressing some of my own childhood experiences in my artwork, my goal is to make an impact for people who are also going through similar experiences.Beauty can be expressed in many ways and it has changed a lot throughout the years. I capture beauty in a hyper realistic manner, expressive and narrative at the same time,using very delicate details and letting the art express itself. I have learned that an artist can evolve by experimenting with different styles. From hyper realism, I am now exploring the world of abstraction and that’s what art means to me. Art speaks for itself and the viewer can pick up different impressions from the same art work and provide their own interpretations.
Kelsey May Connor
My recent work aims to stimulate an emotional response in the viewer by combining elements of geometry, colour theory and compositional balance. I believe that colours in a certain order can achieve a deep sense of meaning. My work does not always attempt to represent a recognizable reality, but instead uses shapes, forms and textures to achieve their effect. My passion for portraiture, music, Malta and the environment has influenced this body of work. I try to achieve pictorial beauty through a form of artistic synthesis, in an attempt to show the viewer my interpretation of the concepts I work with.Part of my process, before I begin working, is to learn more about the topic I have chosen providing deeper knowledge and understanding of the approach and materials I should use, while helping me to generate ideas.
JP MigneCo
Painting and drawing narrative scenes is my passion. I create dramatic and atmospheric fantastical scenes which tell a story. Realism is an important aspect for me and plays an important role, both technically and aesthetically. I have created a series of environment concepts representing a fictional world.I am inspired by both traditional and digital artists. Digital painting is my preferred medium. The fundamental principles of traditional painting and drawing still apply to digital painting. I always try to emulate the aesthetic qualities of the oil technique in conjunction with all the fundamentals behind traditional painting. Using principles such as mood, composition and lighting to my advantage, aids to evoke feelings and emotions, thus it helps me to envision scenes which feel immersive. All of these aspects go hand-in-hand within the process of creating the artwork.
JaKe Mifsud
My artwork speaks of my inward journey – a journey of self-discovery, leading me towards liberation and accepting my limitations. In this journey, contact is made with my thinking process, my creativity, my emotions and my frustrations. My reflections challenged me to modify and sometimes change my attitudes, expanding my vision of reality.I enjoy exploring landscapes, abstract art and painting my personal reflections. My preference is towards bright, vibrant colours and textures using acrylic paint and found objects.
tessie Borg
Most of the work I create stems from the same root even though the subject and interpretation may be different. I tend to be drawn towards psychology, people and the divine; trying to understand what is beyond life besides the obvious death. Although these subjects are quite diverse they still stem from similar backgrounds, that being the search to understand life and what lies beyond. I generally tend to explore using illustrative techniques with pen or ball point biros. I feel that the use of negative space with the contrast of black outlines leaves the viewer time to reflect without being bombarded with imagery. My artworks use a lot of personal and appropriated symbols whilst incorporating subtle messages hidden within them. My work tends to be very meditative for this reason.
Valentina fyorh
Womanhood is an intricate notion which ultimately deals with all the complexities and aspects of being a woman. A woman constantly deals with issues such as femininity, fertility, motherhood, sexual desire in relation to what is expected of her in society and the compromises she is bound to make in life. Through specific imagery I attempt to combine several elements which a female identifies with in order to explore the depths of womanhood. Through this small series I have also tried to combine spiritual and physical aspects regarding womanhood in order to portray a complete and truthful reflection of the female.
Mandy Portelli gheiti
WORK
“Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, Awakes.” - Carl JungModified Book, Paper, Digital Painting and Stopmotion Animation 81 x 60 cm
“I dream my painting, and then I paint my dream.”(Vincent Van Gogh)
I weave dreams and ideas into tapestry of stories and illustrations.
Through Art, I seek to delve deeper into myself and find answers to the meaning of existence and the nature of the self. I seek to transform the mundane into the fantastical in order to inspire people to dream and connect within. I am continually exploring many different fields like science and literature in order to create multidimensional experiences. My works are symbolic and introspective with visionary, metaphysical and spiritual elements subtly hidden behind a veil of child-like wonder. My oeuvre is comprised of drawings, paintings and sculptures in mixed media as well as paper art and digital work.The exhibited work is a reflection on my inner journey of self-discovery and transformation.
taMara feneCh (taMy fae)
The themes I usually work on are quite provocative and controversial. I do not really look at the aesthetics of the works at all as I do not believe it is the most important aspect of my art and art in general. I do focus much more on the concept, thought and message behind my work.Although my work tends to be about conflict, what I’m currently exhibiting is more about peace. I am portraying photographs found from the internet and convert them into tattoos on fake skin. I used tattooing as a medium because of its reputation as a rebellious medium, nevertheless subtly conflicting with the theme of peace. The reason why I did this kind of work is because I wanted to show the good side of these scenes and present my faith in humanity.
leander John sCheMBri
I am primarily concerned with human subjects. The psychological and the physical, what makes people tick inside and out; and how that translates into their identifiable features. As an extension of this, I am fascinated by the human understanding of what is real and genuine. Using painting, sketching or sculpture; I try to capture moments and scenes that evoke a sincere exchange of thought or feeling between the viewer and the work I present. In the work exhibited, I am furthering my experimentation with uncanny human-plant interaction in portraiture; but on a much larger scale. Working with the challenge of large-scale figurative sculpture, I hope to accent the piece’s natural impact and presence; while retaining a sense of personality and humanity in the figures.
toM farrugia
My passion for art is my way of dealing with life; it is a space to let it all out of my system, a world where I’m free to express myself without care. I focus mainly on the raw emotions that a life changing experience may give you. My works revolve around ideas of justice; of animal and human rights; and especially feminism, focusing on the victim and the pathos. When making an artwork I start off by sketching my idea, deciding whether it will be a two-dimensional or three-dimensional artwork. My strength is sculpting with clay, it gives me freedom to express myself better.My current work intends to be provocative and controversial, where although I can’t change everyone’s opinion, I want the viewer to look at the work, let it all in and reconsider the subject.
KiM deguara
My art focuses mainly around portraiture. I am drawn to portraits because a face can say so much about one’s identity.I am passionate about drawing and can easily lose track of time - finding myself working hours on end because I find it so calming. I strive for realism in each drawing, recreating life as we see it with just a simple pencil/graphite and taking great pleasure in capturing every fine detail. Details are key elements to realism, so patience is significant.Today a ‘Selfie’ – the act of taking a self-portrait photograph by your-self and shared by means of social networking – is being used all over the world. I have created a series of such self-portraits, this time through drawing, to share with the viewer how a person can express his or her idea of a ‘selfie’.
Matt aquilina
I find that art performs an important function in life, thus, I strive to communicate an on-going exploration of visual identity. I am mainly concerned with the relationship between health and self-expression.My current work, although seemingly violent, is driven by empathy and a commitment to understand growth. The message behind it is that once broken, it does not merely result in complete destruction yet naturally it can never have the initial structure.It expresses a longing towards a reconciliation of the fragments of the self, whilst exploring the inner aspect of one’s bare body. The self does not cease to sew oneself, thus does not disintegrate but manifests into a constant reflection.
MariJa gauCi
The whole notion of life, death, and the afterlife, always makes me reflect on our whole existence. My belief is that in some way or another, we do keep on living. Our body wilts, dies and slowly fades into nothing, ceasing to exist from this earth, but our soul lives on forever.For this work, I wanted to portray a fragile dying body. Her soul is represented by the light emitting from within her cracking body, pulsating in rhythm with a never-ending heartbeat, beating in the background. I wanted to create a dark place, were the viewer, can quietly experience a spiritual atmosphere by listening to the heartbeats and seeing the pulsations of light to reflect on the mystery of life, death and the afterlife.
MarJoelene CutaJar
For me art is a spiritual experience, a journey through time, of self-discovery and adventure. My main inspiration comes from Nature and the Cosmos – the cycle of life, its wonders, beauty and mysteries. I am attracted to the light and the dark side of things: life and death, good and evil, the beautiful and ugly. I believe that all living things on earth are connected to each other; we are all part of the universe. I am currently exploring and experimenting with new media: found objects from nature and everyday objects. I’m also experimenting with traditional media and processes such as embroidery and oil colour. My aim is to encourage the viewer to reflect and believe, hope and dream. Whatever I dream, feel and imagine, I paint to bring them to life.
Maureen Vella
WORK
The Cunning, The Wise, The Dumb and The Artist Acrylic and Oils on canvas50 x 70 cm
The aim of these works is to let you delve into another world full of ambiguities, introduced through the interplay of bright florescent colours. Where will it lead you? Who are these figures staring back at you? Even though they don‘t see or feel anything they still want you to talk and interact with them, they still have feelings. Stare at them and make them happy or simply ignore them. They will still haunt your thoughts.
Kyle Pulis
Child abuse – a controversial subject; distinguished by many yet tackled by few; a subject which challenged me to translate it artistically in the dire hope of raising awareness and dispute. ‘Innocence lost’ is a painting which represents a child in extreme tremor and psychological agony screaming at the top of her lungs yet, it is a silent scream, no-one can hear her, no-one can amend the damage that has been done. Built by a number of washes with oil colours, the somber yet warm tonalities enhance the intensity of its subject matter contradicting the jocular colours which are often associated with children. My personal intentions for both current and future plans are to delve deeper into this subject which intertwine children and child abuse with the aim of presenting such a brutal and traumatic reality.
aMBer feneCh
My prime interest lies within the orthodox artistic genres including drawing, painting, sculpture and art installation. The material which the work is composed of is highly dependent on the underlying concept. I provoke the viewers to question, deliberate and attempt to rationalize
what confronts them by maintaining ambiguity overall. Interactivity is enhanced by producing large works, inciting the viewer to experience an overwhelming sense of engulfment. Visual aesthetics are highly essential as a means of attraction, aided by a minimalist approach. The balance is counteracted by an intentional movement and dynamism as an attempt to avoid monotony within the same piece and increase both actual and illusionary depth. I am highly intrigued by contradictions of opposing forces which inevitably cause visual and psychological tension. I seek to acquire innovative means to express my philosophical theories which are based on rather disturbing historical
facts and contemporary human behavior.
Zeodielle BaJada
We extend our sincerest appreciation to
