This rich publication presents over one hundred and fifty sketches by Malta’s eminent literary figure, Oliver Friggieri (1947–2020). The majority of the sketches are being published for the first time and include the last sketch produced by Friggieri.
The authors, Dr Terence Portelli and Dr Nikki Petroni, selected and categorised these sketches according to the themes most prevalent in Friggieri’s work: the built environment and its link with the prehistoric, the Maltese countryside, the Maltese village, farmhouses and corbelled stone huts, droves of donkeys, flocks of birds, trees and natural surroundings, flowers, the crucifix, crowds of people and their profiles, abstract designs, boats and harbour scenes, still lifes, and the author’s study.
In the critical study written as a dialogue between the authors, Portelli and Petroni discuss and assess Oliver Friggieri as a teacher and intellectual, following which they contextualise the art of the written word as well as that of the drawn line in Friggieri’s work within the cultural developments of post-Independence Malta. The authors enter into a debate on the symmetrical and intimate bond between his literature and sketches. In Friggieri, words and lines are two facets of a holistic creative force.
The book is printed on fine paper and reproduces an oration that Oliver Friggieri gave to students during a 1991 Graduation Ceremony at the University of Malta. This profound speech – which weaves itself sentence by sentence along the pages of sketches to allow space for reflection – invites the readers to remember Friggieri’s values and ideals, as well as to recognise his capturing of the Maltese soul, and thus incite those who experience his words and imagery to deepen their love for Maltese culture.
One may choose the book cover’s colour from three options: red, blue or grey.
This limited edition book, published by Klabb Kotba Maltin, may be purchased directly from their .
This article is also available in Maltese.
This article is also available in Maltese.
