Masterworks of Mattia Preti

Located in a beautiful building, the Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta treasures works of art by artists such as Turner, Guido Reni and Ribera, along with a selection of works by the best Maltese artists. Moreover, the museum hosts the most important collection of works by Mattia Preti. We asked Alexander de Bono, curator of the museum, to present some of these masterpieces, starting from the famous young Saint John the Baptist. This is one of Mattia Preti's most popular works. What I really like about this painting is the Baptist's expression. It's intriguing and depicts someone very sure of himself, very determined, very convinced of what he's doing, who's pointing at the lamb without hesitating, without second thoughts. This recalls the way of thinking of a 17th century knight educated to martyrdom. In fact, one must remember that the knights of Saint John were trained to believe that if they died in battle, they had direct access to paradise. And this painting is the product of that way of thinking. In the work The Doubting Thomas, Caravaggio's influence on Mattia Preti is very evident in the chiaroscuro effects. The centre of the painting remains the figure of Christ, and Saint Thomas is enclosed in a triangle with Christ. Christ's hand is on one side of the triangle. All the other characters in the scene are outside this dialogue, which is also enhanced by the light. There are two types of light, an interior one, of the architectural space, which illuminates Saint Thomas' back and the faces of the apostles. But there's another light, a divine one, which reaches Christ and makes him stand out from the surrounding figures. This is another very sophisticated aspect of this painting. Another painting that obtained huge success is the Martyrdom of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, representing the executioner just about to behead Saint Catherine when a beam of divine light strikes him and the saint. Once again in this painting there are some very sophisticated aspects. A weighty masculinity, both physical and anatomical, is depicted alongside a fragile maiden, who is protected by the Lord. The saint is treated in a beautiful and extraordinary manner. She is positioned in the centre of the painting, and although she is in the background, she remains the central focus of the painting. Twenty years later, Mattia Preti went back to the theme of Saint Catherine's martyrdom for the altarpiece of the parish church of Zuri. Compared to the Saint Catherine of twenty years before, Mattia Preti increased the number of characters, almost creating a battlefield around the glorious figure of the saint, who with her eyes gazing towards heaven, ignores what is happening around her. The use of colour changes as well, yellows and earth colours prevail. Restorer Giuseppe Mantella explains, Upon his arrival on the island, the light of Malta and the yellow of the Maltese stone saturate his paintings. This stone in powdered form was used even in the preparation of the colours, and we found it during a series of restoration works. This stone is characterised by the presence of fossils. It is as if in Mattia Preti's paintings, Malta's light and materials become one. Mattia Preti's last masterpiece is in the attractive town of Vittoriosa, the knight's first capital in Malta. At the age of 76, Mattia Preti painted one of his masterpieces, his biggest painting, representing the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, measuring more than 4 by 6 metres. The characters are in constant movement, but inside a static panorama, which recalls his early years in Rome.