Review / Malta / Exhibtion November - December 2021
JOANNA DELIA
JOANNA DELIA is a medical doctor who specialises in cosmetic medicine. She is also a cultural consumer and art collector who tirelessly supports local contemporary art and culture.
MAMA’S BOY, WHICH RAN FROM THE 29 SEPTEMBER TO 27 OCTOBER 2021 IN A NEW ART SPACE AT 38, MAIN STREET BALZAN WAS THE THIRD SOLO SHOW BUT FIRST IN MALTA, FOR THE LONDON-BASED ARTIST ROXMAN GATT. ‘Gatt’s wider practice is centred on notions of sexuality, identity, and queer nature. Over the years, the artist has developed a vocabulary of materials – highly influenced by macho culture – to unpack patriarchal symbols. The car and its gear, shields, armour suits, among others, have all been redefined to speak about overlooked modes of vulnerability and oxymoron symbiotic relations in human bodies.
Blink
TWICE IF YOUR EYES ARE OPEN, YOU’LL SEE THE THINGS WORTH SEEING (RUMI)
Installation view, Trans Mercurial Vapor Bb, Roxman Gatt, football boots, soft toy, plaits, chains, 2021. Photo by Niels Plotard
It is not often that there are two concurrent solo shows of this calibre by Maltese born artists who are starting to make waves internationally. I caught up with the artists to delve into the process and rendition leading up to these shows.
Mama’s boy plays with the biological notion of chimera – organisms that consist of more than one genotype under the same body, also known as bilateral gynandromorphs. Among other species, chimera butterflies are an example of non-binary animals existing in nature. These asymmetrical, weird, and rare creatures carry contradictory connotations on them, reflecting the trans discourse of today. From one side, the butterfly has often been the symbol of trans communities to highlight the journey of body transformation and beauty, while on the other, chimeras, they seem unnatural, alien creatures, almost like monsters, similarly to the stigma and violence that the trans community has been receiving from mass media. The exhibition explores the notion of metamorphosis as an evolutionary process to unfold trans ecologies, embodied experience, memory, and liminal time. Comprised of newly-produced sculptures, paintings, and moving-image works, Mama’s boy questions the epistemic violence and duality that society, media, and science hold.’ JD: First solo show in Malta, your birthplace – and like most things in your life, you did it yourself. You even did the space up yourself. How does that feel? RG: This was my third solo show, however the first one in Malta. My dad has helped me a great deal with this space and if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have managed to have a space like this. Recently, I have been thinking a lot about wanting or feeling the need to have a project space in Malta that would showcase artists and projects that I feel close to. This definitely wasn’t something I planned to do this year though. Coming back to Malta was also not expected, I came last September for what should have been a month and I am still here. During these months, a lot has happened, such as these projects that I have been working, on as well as my coming out as a trans man and the start of my transitioning journey. JD: Relationship with curator – what was the curatorial process for this show? RG: It is very important to work with someone who has a genuine interest and understanding of your work. Akis and I have developed a very beautiful friendship starting from day one, which was on my 30th birthday party. We started hanging out and following each other’s work ever since. It was the two paintings Take My Breast Away [diptych] that led to the birth of Mama’s Boy. >>
No.16__ Artpaper / 025
