Set the scene.
Barthet’s Marì tal-Bajdun, painted in 1964, portrays a woman associated with selling eggs and vegetables. A portrait’s subject need not be a ruler or an aristocrat.
Here’s the twist.
His 1968 painting The Bathers explores a different direction. Its coloured squares connect with the development of the rooftop paintings for which he became known.
Why it still matters.
Put the two works side by side: the same artist could investigate a recognisable person and experiment with colour and structure. A career rarely fits inside one label.
🧠 One to think about +
What does this story change about the way you see Malta today? Pick one detail you’d tell a friend — then check its source below.
