Artist Dominique Ciancio said that he is delighted to showcase his work in the collection Semartilma – Dissolving Borders, at an exhibition currently being held at Art e… Gallery in Victoria, Gozo.

This body of work was commenced ten years ago and shows an artistic process that diffuses boundaries through the intricate use of layers. Form gives way to ethereal beauty.

Sema, Art, Ilma Sky, Earth, Water Dissolving Borders Breath and landscape become one.

Dominique Ciancio was born in 1983 in Malta and grew up in the family’s home in Sliema. It was during this formative period that he became acquainted with the vivid dramatic canvases of the old masters.

He recalls for instance, habitually scrutinising Caravaggio’s big screen painting hanging only minutes away from his home. Surely a sight for sore eyes, this and various other firsthand observations somewhat persuaded Ciancio into becoming a painter.

Consequently he began studying painting and drawing from an early age, always compelled by a sense of curiosity and joie de vivre.

He has also been involved in backstage painting for theatre and film, working for Universal Pictures in addition to productions with notable directors such as Stephen Spielberg.

In 2004 he earned a degree in History of Art from the University of Malta as well as a four year Diploma in Fine Arts, from the School of Art in Valletta. After that he travelled extensively within Europe.

Currently Ciancio has been presenting his paintings internationally, especially via Scandinavia, where his artwork has now reached private collections from America to Asia.

Never ceasing to learn, he buys and mixes his own quality pigments, stretches and prepares his canvases and uses acquaintances as models. He purposely uses these methods to give a certain crust to his paintings: a surface that transcends reality. “Each painting can be a tiny window into an open universe,” he says. Accordingly, just as colours are laid down on a palette and then mixed, Ciancio brings forth all his diverse interests and blends them to craft a visual poetry about life’s own experiences.

The exhibition is open to the public until the 8th of January and the opening hours are: Monday to Sunday 9.30am – 12.15pm, or by appointment:
Dominique Ciancio (+356) 9954 1617 or Maria Cassar (Art..e) (+356) 9980 4774.

Photographs: Alain Salvary

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