Set of 8 Malta scenes

Set of 8 paintings / Sett ta 8 pitturi

On our 2010 holiday in Malta I visited an exhibition of paintings by E Caruana Dingli at the Grandmasters' palace in Valletta. In one of the corridors on lunettes on top of the windows I saw a set of paintings by Giovanni Bonello painted by him after others done before him. These are all Maltese and Gozitan scenes executed before the invention of photography. I took photos of them and when I came back to Canada I manipulated them with Photoshop because of the angle and interpreted them all in acrylic over black gesso on 24" X 12" board.

Fl-2010, meta konna Malta ghall-btala, mort nara wirja ta pittura ta E Caruana Dingli l-palazz tal-belt Valletta u f'wiehed mill-kurituri fuq il-lunetti ta fuq it-twieqi, rajt sett ta pitturi li Giovanni Bonello kien pitter minn ohrajn li saru qablu. Dawn huma ta' xeni f’Malta w’ Ghawdex tas-seklu 19 qabel ma giet ivvintata l-fotografija. Gbidt ritratti taghhom u malli rgajt lura l-Canada, ddrittajthom bil-Photoshop minhabba l-angolu. Interpretajthom kollha fuq 'board' ta' 24 pulzier bi 12 b'zebgha akrilika fuq 'gesso' iswed.

1. The Grandmaster's Garden - Gnien is-Sultan

The scene looks a little bit strange because we were in the beginning of British rule. On the bastions below the upper Barracca, there existed the Grandmaster Del Monte's garden. The British dismantled everything in it including the ornate watchtower, to build a massive round edged bastion. Below it they also raised a building resembling the Customs house but on a smaller scale.

Id-dehra naqra stramba ghax konna fil-bidu tal-Inglizi f'Malta. Fuq dak is-sur taht il-Barrakka ta fuq kien hemm Gnien is-Sultan - kif kienu jsejhulu l-Granmastru li dak iz-zmien kien Del Monte. L-Inlizi hattewh bil-gardjola b'kollox u bnew sur iehor bil-gnieb fit-tond. Barra minn hekk bnew bini iehor tahtu jixbah dak tad-dwana imma icken.

2. Casa Leoni - Il-palazz tal-Iljuni

The artist who originally painted this one did not have today's traffic bothering him and he stood in the shade of the arches of Wignacourt's Aqueduct to paint. The church in the background on the right is the old Sta Venera church before it got its belfry and on the left foreground are the first St Joseph's church and institute with another church in the background behind them. Nowadays the area of this scene is all built up with the Institute and its church changed and enlarged. Casa Leoni is still there with its gardens behind it nowadays open to the public.

Min pitter din originarjament ma kellux it-traffiku tal-lum itellfu u qaghad ghad-dell tal-mini tal-akwedott ta' Wignacourt ipitter. Il-knisja ta' wara l-palazz 'il boghod fuq il-lemin, hija l-qadima ta' Sta Venera qabel ma zidulha l-Kanpnar u fuq ix-xellug fuq quddiem, hemm l-ewwel knisja w'istitut ta' San Guzepp bi knisja warajhom fil-boghod. Illum madwar din ix-xena mtela bil-bini u l-istitut tkabbar u nbidel bil-knisja tieghu ukoll. Il palazz tal-Iljuni ghadhu hemm kif kien bil-gonna ta warajh illum miftuhin ghan-nies.

After being used as headquarters by the Maltese involved in the uprising against the French in 1798 and afterwards by the British Lieutenant Governors, it was utilized for a while as a museum then as an elementary school, and now as the offices of the Sta Venera Civic Council. The gardens at the back have been open to the public these last 45 years.

Wara li ntuza ghal laqghat tal-konfoffa kontra l-Francizi fl-1798 u wara bhala l-palazz tal-Logutenenti Gvernaturi Nglizi, ghamel zmien jintuza bhala skola primarja, imbaghad muzew u fl-ahhar bhal issa mill-Kunsill Civiku ta Santa Venera. Il-gonna tieghu warajh ilhom miftuhin ghall-pubbliku sa minn 45 sena ilu.

3. The Gozo Citadel - Ic-Cittadella Ghawdex

Up there on the bastions, little has changed but all around was fields at that time, except along the main road leading up which was already full of houses belonging to the upper class. I don't think one can still spot too many fields on one's way up to Rabat because the only reason the Citadel itself can be seen now, is because it is perched so high up.

Hemm, fuq is-swar ftit jidher li nbidel imma madwar kien ghadu eghlieqi hlief it-triq principali li tihdok 'il fuq li kienet diga mimlija bid-djar tas-sinjuri. Ma nahsibx li ghad wiehed jista jara wisq eghlieqi huwa w'tiela r-Rabat ghax anqas ma tintlemah ic-Cittadella nnifisha kieku ma kinitx hekk fl-gholi!

4. Porta del Monte - Marina Gate

Del Monte Gate, or as the British used to call it, Marina Gate. If one looks for this entrance to Valletta, one will not find it. Built by Grandmaster Del Monte, it was dismantled by the British in 1900 and Victoria gate built with two archways a few meters to the right of it. Porta del Monte had one main entrance with a drawbridge on chains and two small pedestrian entrances, one on each side. On the left of this gate, there existed the garden of the Grandmaster (Sultan), which the British demolished also. The entrance to the garden can be seen at the left.

Porta del Monte (jew kif kienu jsibuha l-Inglizi Marina Gate). Jekk tfittex dan il-bieb, hdejn il-pixkerija l-Port il-Kbir, ma ssibux. Mibni mill-Grammastru Del Monte, waqqghuh l-Inglizi fl-1900 biex bnew Victoria Gate b'zewg arkati ftit jardi 'l isfel. Porta del Monte kellha dahla wahda b'pont jittellgha fuq il-ktajjen u zewg passaggi ghan-nies wiehed kull naha. Fuq ix-xellug, il-gnien tal-Granmastru jew kif kienu jsejhulu tas-Sultan, qerduh l-Inglizi wkoll. Id-dahla tieghu tidher fil-pittura.

5. Mdina bastions - Is-swar tal-iMdina

One can neither spot the old fountain nor Casino Notabile full of sculpture in this painting but one can just see the Point de Vue hotel standing alone on the left. In front of it in the foreground one can see the Mnarja stage from where the Grandmaster used to give out prizes to the winners of the horse races. There is also another old building near the stage which still stands nowadays.

F'din ix-xena ma tidhirx il-funtana antika u anqas il-Casino Notabile imzewwaq bl-iskultura imma wiehed jista jara l-Hotel Il-Veduta jew Point de Vue wieqaf wahdu fuq ix-xellug. Quddiemu aktar vicin jidhru l-palk tal-Imnarja minn fejn il-Granmastru kien iqassam il-palji lir-rebbieha tat-tigrijiet, xi bini iehor u triq it-tigrija li ghadhom hemm sal-lum.

6. Mgarr Gozo harbour - Il-port tal-iMgarr Ghawdex

Where are the large ferries and the enormous quay? Fort Chambray is still up there but now containing modern buildings within its walls, but Our Lady of Lourdes church is nowhere to be seen. At the shore on the left a huge modern customs house has taken the place of the tiny one. That hotel built British style was still standing at the start of the 20th century, now there's the wide road going up in its place. The greenery has mostly vanished being replaced by buildings.

Fejnhom il-vapuri kbar u l-moll daqshiex? Forti Chambray ghadu hemm fuq illum mimli bil-bini modern gewwa, izda l-knisja ta Lourdes anqas tidher. Ix-xatt, fuq ix-xellug, tidher id-Dwana fejn llum hemm wahda moderna u akbar. Dik il-lukanda mibnija stil Ingliz kienet wieqfa sal-bidu tas-seklu 20, issa hemm it-telgha minflokha. Dik il-hdura ta madwar, illum il-bicca l-kbira ha postha l-bini.

7. Verdala palace - Il-Palazz Verdala

This palace has been in service for a long time and has always been taken care of. Initially built as a summer residence for Grandmaster Verdala, it was used by the Governors under British rule and nowadays by Maltese presidents. The trees look so small in the painting, nowadays they're so grown that one cannot take a decent picture of the palace with them in the way!

Il-palazz serva hafna zminijiet u dejjem hadu hsiebu. Inbena l-ewwel appuntu bhala post ghall-btala mill-Granmastru Verdala, imbaghad fi zmien l-Inglizi waqa f'idejn il-Gvernaturi u issa sintendi juzawh il-Presidenti ta Malta. Kemm kienu ghadhom zghar is-sigar fil-pittura, illum tant kibru li bilkemm tista tigbed ritratt ta din ix-xena suret in-nies u ggibu jidher il-palazz!

8. Wignacourt tower - It-torri Wignacourt

The tower is still there, restored, but the stairs in front were removed a few years ago. Inside was used as a telephone exchange for the St Paul's Bay area when the system was still manual. The villas on the right are gone, replaced by apartments catering for tourists. This scene must have been painted from where today there is a parish hall.

It-torri ghadu hemm, restawrat, imma dak it-tarag li kien ghadu jezisti sa ftit snin ilu, nehhewh. F'dan it-torri kien hemm it-telephone exchange ta San Pawl meta kellna sistema kollha manwali. Il-vilel li jidhru fuq il-lemin issa spiccaw u hadu posthom appartamenti ghat-turisti. Din il-veduta tidher giet impittra minn fejn illum hemm is-sala tal-knisja.