The Malta Society of Arts is hosting two new exhibitions at Palazzo de La Salle in Valletta.

The upper galleries will welcome the works by artists Ruth Ancilleri and Sarah Maria Scicluna as part of Documents of Inheritance/ Poetics of Desire.

On the other hand, a relatively new and exciting space – the Basement Vaults – will host clay works by Ioulia Chante, known as Babau Ceramics, as part of What’s Bugging You?

Documents of Inheritance / Poetics of Desire investigates how wild plants and weeds can be seen as inherited heirlooms from nature and become a symbol of desire or yearning to go back to more natural roots.

The exhibition consists of 23 works by Sarah Maria Scicluna, who works mainly in silk screen printing and drawing through a digital approach, and 20 pencil drawings printed on transparent film and organza fabric by Ruth Ancilleri.

Ms Scicluna explains that her starting point was researching endemic flora found in Malta growing wildly in urban areas. She took long walks and observed what is growing around and in the pavement.

“I started to document these wild plants through photography, video and 3D scanning. These images were later broken down digitally, formed into compositions and translated into line work drawings, which were later plotted with a pen plotter,” she continued.

Ms Ancilleri, on the other hand, used a system where she transferred pencil drawings of these plants onto several transparent layers of paper or fabric, which she later merged into one artwork.

In Documents of Inheritance / Poetics of Desire, curator Carmen Aquilina invites viewers to contemplate the delicate interplay between fragility and resilience in the natural world, questioning our place within in.

“The exhibition serves as a timely reminder to slow down and heighten the awareness of our awareness,” she remarks.

The second exhibition to open at the Malta Society of Arts will feature 30 clay and ceramic pieces.  It features a combination of sculptural and functional items with additional conceptual ones that still fit in a domestic setting.

Ms Chante explains that this series of objects are highly personal to her as these “resemble fragments of the most intimate and darkest moments” she has experienced.

“What’s Bugging You? Presents the rawest, most vulnerable, and primitive emotions of human nature and the huma psyche, as experienced by people on a day-to-day basis. This is why I attempted to create a familiar and safe setting of a home/living space that could fit the unique features of the Basement Vaults,” she noted.

Working from her home studio, Chante creates most of her works on the wheel. “I like the process of it. It is a very grounding and relaxing process which fills me with a lot of clarity and peace.”

Malta Society of Art’s President Adrian Mamo shares that the works of Ms Ancilleri, Ms Scicluna and Ms Chante challenges the audience to reflect on their surroundings and emotions.

Documents of Inheritance/Poetics of Desire by Ruth Ancilleri and Sarah Maria Scicluna as well as What’s Bugging You? By Iouliana Chante open officially on 30th May and 31st May 2024, respectively. Admission is free and opening hours can be found here.