This is a 5000-word article ready for publication which brings to light some new documents pertaining to Giorgio Preca’s studies both in Malta and in Rome. Other documents are about correspondence he had with his mentor Chev. Edward Caruana Dingli and other artists.
The article highlights Preca’s important exhibitions such as: at “Galleria Colonna”, in Rome in 1938, his first personal exhibition in Malta in 1938 at the Old Railway Station in Valletta, “Gallery Fontanella”, Rome in 1946 and at the “Gallery S. Agostino in Via della Scrofa”, Rome in 1947, and later in 1948, the same works were brought over to Malta and exhibited at the Hotel Phoenicia in Floriana.
The exhibits pressed for change and managed to stir the stagnant waters of Maltese art which needed to break away from its conservative mentality. The exhibition consisted of 29 paintings. It ran between December 28, 1948 until January 4, 1949. The article also highlights the Stella Maris Crucifixion controversy and Giorgio Preca’s role as a charismatic leader of the Modern Art Circle and Modern Art Group. Several art works are also discussed within this historic background.
