So, Michelangelo’s Last Judgment is a first-hand derivation from the narrative present in the Bible, the written document on the history of Christ, known by every Christian. Yet, its unique intoxicating potency lies in the tactility that a historian can never endow with his analysis of facts. Tactility is a peculiar condition and singularity of art, and as Baudrillard once defined it, it is that register of sense which is of the order of contact, not of physical and sensual contact alone, of course, but rather a sort of communication between the work and the receiver, achieved through individual perception
Art to Art/Art against Art
Adrian Bartolo-
In the collection -Reinterpreting Preti
Contemporary Works by Maltese Artists
National Museum of Fine Arts-Valletta, Malta
Exhibition organized to commemorate the tercentenary of
The death of Mattia Preti in Malta, January 1699.
GETTING DELIBERATE
On many walks through the streets of Valletta, starting from 2007, when I first visited Malta from Tripoli, I came into first-hand contact with European artists. This was a development of the interpretation and re-interpretation of art works, which had reached a different level after having been associated with the School of Fototechnik-New Delhi.
In these six months, the instructor Tirtha Das Gupta, took us through the different facets of photography, and how it can be used to re-interpret the works of life, art, living, daily living and much more. He introduced us to the zone system as first refined by the photographer Ansel Adams.
This made me look at the Temples of Pre-Christian era in North Africa-Libya and the Temples of Luxor and Karnak (Egypt-2004-11) and the pyramids of Giza in a different way.
GETTING INSPIRED
To the left of Christ is his mother, Virgin Mary, who turns her head to look down towards the Saved, though her pose also suggests resignation. It appears that the moment has passed for her to exercise her traditional role of pleading on behalf of the dead; with John the Baptist this Deesis is a regular motif in earlier compositions.[10] Preparatory drawings show her standing and facing Christ with arms outstretched, in a more traditional intercessory posture
By Michelangelo – File:Lastjudgement.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=90988384
GET GOING
2009-Andrea Vaccaro’s painting “Salome Receiving the Head of the Baptist”
https://prashantbhatt.com/2009/01/28/museum-imaging-malta/
DIGGING DEEP
In the Tripoli region- of Libya, Franciscan priests have taken talks on the paintings and frescoes at the Church of San Francisco- Dahra. They tell of the different points in the life of St.Francis, which made us relate to the life of St. Francis, and the history of the Church in Libya in a more intimate way.
In this talk- father explains the Coat of Arms of the Bishop of Tripoli- Father Martinelli- who passed away last year (Dec 30-2019). When Bishop Martinelli became Bishop in 1985, he chose the words Patience and Humility to guide him through the challenges of building the spiritual community and Church in Libya
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_Innocenzo_Martinelli
Glossary of Key Themes
TACTILITY
Tactility is a peculiar condition and singularity of art, and as Baudrillard once defined it, it is that register of sense which is of the order of contact, not of physical and sensual contact alone, of course, but rather a sort of communication between the work and the receiver, achieved through individual perception
FRANCISCANS
Franciscan, any member of a Roman Catholic religious order founded in the early 13th century by St. Francis of Assisi. The Franciscan order is one of the four great mendicant orders of the church, and its members strive to cultivate the ideals of poverty and charity. Congregations of these religious men and women are numerous all over the Roman Catholic world, and the Franciscans are the largest religious order in the Roman Catholic Church.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Franciscans
MATTIA PRETI
Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Saint John.
Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was called Il Cavalier Calabrese (the Calabrian Knight) after appointment as a Knight of the Order of St. John (Knights of Malta) in 1660.[1] His early apprenticeship is said to have been with the “Caravaggist” Giovanni Battista Caracciolo, which may account for his lifelong interest in the style of Caravaggio.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mattia_Preti
Prashant Bhatt's notes 