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Exhibition commemorating artist Giuseppe Cali
(Sunday, 27th November 2005)

To mark the 75th anniversary of the death of artist Giuseppe Calì, the Ministry for Gozo's organising committee is holding an exhibition of his works found in Gozo at the Old Parish Church, Ghajnsielem. The exhibition, entitled 'Giuseppe Calì works in Gozo' will be open until December 8 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to noon on weekends. Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono presided the inauguration on Saturday, during which there was a performance by harpist Anne Marie Camilleri Podestà and a commemorative lecture on the life and works of Calì by Mark Sagona.

Cali was born in Valletta on the 14th August, 1846, was the son of Raffaele an artist and musician and of Giovanna Padiglione, a meza-soprano. He was married to Perennia Pace from Senglea and they had a big family of ten children.

From early youth, Cali showed marked gifts and considerable promise as an artist. His major work, The Death of Dragut in 1867 placed at the Museum of Fine Arts and that of St. Jerome in the year 1881 situated at the Sacro Cuor Church in Sliema, which are still considered among his masterpieces.

He made an immediate impact on Maltese society and soon became a household name. He steadily embarked on a wide program of commissions for the decoration of private houses, landscapes as well a portraits of Maltese subjects. Cali's first religious paint was The Virgin of the Rosary for the parish church of Mosta. Numerous churches in Malta bear witness to his versatility and mastery. He was a prolific artist and founder of the modern school of Maltese painting.

Cali's ability and virtuosity may be assessed in the St. Domenic altarpiece in the parish church of Porto Salvo, Valletta, The prophets in Mosta church the portraits of Negotiante Agostino Cassar Torregini and Guidice Carbone; the Tre Rome and The Nativity at Luqa parish church. The Apotheosis of St. Francis at St. Francis church in Valletta was purposely painted by the artist to demonstrate his virtuosity in the face of competition by foreign artist of lesser merit.

Giuseppe Cali