Il-Bottegin ta' San Martin

Expressions in Wood

   Today our lives are greatly influenced by mass production, by technology and by velocity. We want everything and we want it now. Wood carving contrasts greatly with this life style. Progress is very slow and laborious while mistakes once made are hard to correct. In addition, as the production of a single piece may take weeks if not months the final cost is regrettably high making the works hard to sell. This explains why it is quite rare to find artists who dedicate themselves to this difficult medium.

 Martin Bezzina Wettinger is one of these few local artists who has taken the challenge. Martin whose successful studio “Il-Bottegin ta’ San Martin” found at 185A, Old Bakery, Valletta, is holding another solo exhibition at the MCAST Main Campus, Administration building Foyer, Triq Kordin, Paola.

By profession Martin is a lecturer in Mathematics working in the LSU department at the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology. Martin who obtained his diploma in Fine Arts with the Malta School of Art in 2006 works in a variety of media. However, his real passion remains wood carving where he can bring together very high mental and spiritual activity with physical fatigue.

Among his influences there are many classical Greek sculptures and the Renaissance artists. In contemporary art Martin is influenced by the wood sculptors of Val Gardena, stone sculptor Lawrence Attard, and George Fenech. In his sculptures he likes to represent the human figure. Martin works in a crude and rough fashion leaving most of his works with a tooled finish.

The exhibition will be open on Sunday 17^th May (10:00-17:00) and from Monday 18th to Thursday 28th May (8:00-16:00).