Heritage Malta have announced that they are currently exhibiting a number of drawings and bozzettoes from the national collection at the National Museum of Fine Arts in Valletta.

The exhibition seeks to explore and present the ways an artist works through a selection spanning three centuries of artistic activity in Malta. The choice also reflects different stages in producing a painting mostly reflecting different circumstances and requirements as the artist grapples with his initial also explored.

The exhibition includes a varied selection of works, some have been studied and published, others are being shown for the first time. It also proposes new titles for well known and published works that have been noted during the during researches carried out in connection with the exhibition.

Such initial drawings would be generally followed by more detailed ones. Some might eventually be used by the artist in producing the painting or handed out to assistants as guidance.

Examples of such drawings include those of Mattia Preti which have stains and blotches of colour that are indicative of their uses on site. Assistants might also be asked to copy a finished painting or assist in producing copies after the master’s original works.

Preliminary sketches and studies were often kept by the artist and often re-utilised. An inventory of works belonging to the artists Alessio Erardi refers to such a collection

The exhibition is open free of charge from Monday to Sunday until August the 31st.

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