Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1376560
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 MAY 2021 5 ART 'SURA' an exhibition of contemporary art dolls at Spazju Kreattiv, Valletta SURA, an exhibition of contem- porary art dolls will be open- ing at Spazju Kreattiv (Spaces C1-C4) on the 4th May bringing to the public an array of hand- crafted figures made of various media. THE exhibition, curated and designed by Elyse Tonna, pre- sents the works of Glen Calleja and Lori Sauer who have been collaborating on the project for the past three years. The exhi- bition includes a sound instal- lation by sculptor Matyou Galea and an exhibition catalogue with a number of stories, reflec- tions and poems by writer Clare Azzopardi. "Dolls are unlike other ob- jects." says Tonna. "They're charged with special powers. They offer comfort and solace, they're proxies for people we love, people we hate and for ourselves. We speak to them and sometimes...they reply." Calleja prefers to work with rags, gauze and string often turning them into fabric fig- ures. His dolls float, rather than stand, and are mostly limbless giving one the impression that they were never meant to walk this Earth. Some sport heavy horns on extra small heads. Others have rusty nails hang- ing from their bellies, exposed entrails perhaps. Sauer's dolls stand straight and strong, neatly composed figures in vellum, paper, rods, hair and wire grounded on plinths and bases. Her dolls are generally faceless and sex- less. Many of these sculptures are dominated by rounded tor- sos made out of layers of ma- terial mounted on a distinct spine that passes right through the centre of the structure. Similarly, her miniature dolls are made of striated layers of string wound around a central column. From these composi- tions, humanlike personalities emerge. The SURA exhibition is an attempt at making sense of the human need to create objects in our likeness to accompa- ny us through life as dolls do. SURA speaks of this extended family, of belonging and ostra- cisation. The exhibition will be open until the 23rd of May 2021. The opening hours are Tues- day-Friday 10-6.30pm. This project is supported by Arts Council Malta and Spazju Kreattiv. Photo by Giola Cassar Photo by Giola Cassar Photo by Giola Cassar