Its main aim will be to show the prestige of recent and contemporary art, both locally and Europe-wide, through the choice of the very best works of art. The Biennale is scheduled for Winter 2015, its theme being Christianity, Spirituality and the Other. The exhibits will deal with the interrelationship between spirituality and religious belief, examining the role of the Other.
The Other includes every aspect within the spectrum of spirituality, a spiritual identity that embraces the tension between doubt, belief, non-belief and the struggle to define the spiritual parameters of humankind.
Dr Schembri Bonaci is fully aware of the challenges posed in carrying out this project to completion within such a relatively short time span, but he is confident that he and his team can bring this about.
The Biennale will be divided into four main sections:
a) Four resident Maltese artists will be specially invited to participate
b) Fifteen further artists from anywhere in Europe, including Malta, chosen by the artistic director, will be asked to exhibit one or two works each, specifically created for the Biennale
c) Other artists may apply for the right to propose their works, and if chosen these too will be exhibited at the Biennale.
d) A major twentieth-century artist will be selected, and a group of his or her works exhibited under the umbrella of the Biennale
The artistic director has underlined the importance of energetically launching the international aspects of this artistic event. Discussions are already taking place with artists from the UK, Italy, Germany, Spain, Bulgaria, Russia and other European countries.
Conditions and regulations for participation will be published in due course.
Dr Giuseppe Schembri Bonaci graduated from the University of Malta, the State University of Kiev, and the State University of Moscow. He also did postgraduate research at the State University of Milano. He specialised in Law, Philosophy and the Arts. Dr Schembri Bonaci is currently senior lecturer in the Department of History of Art, University of Malta. Besides being the author of several academic research publications he is also an artist who has exhibited in various Maltese and international galleries.
