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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 MAY 2024 4 ALMANAC My essentials JOANNE FENECH PORTELLI Visual Artist I love plein air painting, as painting outdoors becomes an adventure in itself, I actively exhibit my artworks locally and abroad, favourite medium is oils, I also regularly draw and paint the figure from life, and take part annually in international plein air festivals. 1. Books 2. Film 3. Internet/TV 4. Music 5. Place I love listening to music while I paint, especially outdoors. My favourite play- list is of a music art- ist called Sotogawa which I found by chance on Boom- play who has only released two albums till now. Their music is so relaxing and it helps me to concen- trate and go stress free. Other musi- cians I like listening to are Petit Biscuit, Besso, Inossi, and Enrico Einaudi. LOCALLY, I like exploring coastal and countryside tracks with my family, mostly ones discovered by my husband. From all the places visited abroad, I would always choose Italy, it is a country that has everything, from good food to art and nature. Knowing the language is a plus, Italy never disappoints. We love visiting Sicily especially. Last summer we spent a week in Pantelleria, an island as big as Gozo in the strait of Sicily, less built. We enjoyed swimming and tak- ing hot spring baths in Lago di Venere. On my bucket list are Cornwall in the UK and Iceland. CURRENTLY I am reading a biography about the French female Impressionist painter Berthe Morisot written by Anne Higonet. Berthe was the only woman art- ist in the circle of the six Impressionist painters who first exhibited in the Salon de Paris in 1864. She was a strong char- actered woman because despite of her friends' and family's protest, she contin- ued to regularly participate in the Im- pressionists' artshows and struggle for recognition. Married to Manet's brother Eugene, her studio was the outdoors in parks and gardens. Yet, she also painted the working women of her time: women washing linen, nannies, cooks and maids, but also women's private toilette mo- ments. She was a woman of great culture and charm for her time. I hadn't been at the cinema for a long time because of the pan- demic. A while ago I went with my husband and son to watch Topgun: Maverick with a group of aviation enthusiast people. I must say this sequel is action packed and even though so, I would watch it all over again be- cause it is so well acted and the plot so flowing that it keeps your attention all the time. The most beautiful moments in the movie is when Goose saves Maverick's life and when they escape, as this resolves the friction between them and rebonds them. ON social media I follow contemporary artists, photographers, nutrition and cooking pages, too many to mention. Lately I had to watch part one of Stranger Things sea- son 4. It keeps you on edge, now looking for- ward for part two to be released. Even though I don't usually like to watch horror, this I had to watch since I had watched the pre- vious seasons, just to quench curiosity. Compiled by Laura Calleja suggestions by email lcalleja@mediatoday.com This page is supported by Arts Council Malta 4 5 1 2 3