Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/556862
14 IT always feels a little odd to play the tourist in your own country: espe- cially when one's last visit to the St John's Co-Cathedral Museum dates back to a school visit some 30 years earlier. On this occasion it felt odd for an- other reason. Unlike the two Car- avaggios and the Cathedral itself – every conceivable nook or cranny of which is arguably a work of art in its own right – I had never given much thought to its collection of 17th cen- tury Flemish tapestries since that visit long ago. They had faded into a distant and unremarkable memory, from a time when 'giant hanging car- pets' (so they seemed to me, at any rate) held little fascination for young schoolboys with attention span dis- orders. Seeing them again today is a dif- ferent experience. Even if only five of the 29 tapestries are actually on display, they are enough to evoke an image of grandeur that is every bit as impressive as its other, more famous exhibits. You are left wondering how much more impressive the collection would appear, if exhibited in its total- ity… Cynthia De Giorgio, curator of the museum, has just taken me on a guided tour to outline the Cathedral Foundation's plans to extend and refurbish the museum. It involved walking through the (admittedly tiny) hall which serves that purpose today; then out into the courtyard facing Merchants Street… which is where the new tapestry chamber would be built, if the Foundation has its way in the end. Unlike the original 2007 plans for an underground museum, the archi- tects now envisage a chamber built at first floor level along the length of the façade: part of which would over- hang the existing courtyard, which would in turn be redesigned as an entrance. Later in her office we pore over ar- tistic impressions of how the finished project would look. The lower half of the façade from street level would be virtually unchanged… except for the removal of the existing platform beneath the Great Siege monument (which would remain in place), and the addition of a glass façade in front of the existing arches. Once in the courtyard, however, one would no longer see the side of the Cathedral. Compared to the dramatic ar- chitectural changes experienced in other parts of Malta, the visual im- pact is not particularly extensive. But then again, this is not exactly any old part of Malta. This is Valletta: a Unesco World Heritage site where even the conversion of a washroom into a penthouse can instantly spark outrage, among an increasingly her- itage-conscious population. The Foundation's plans are no exception: heritage conservation groups such as Flimkien Ghal Am- bjent Ahjar have objected to the project, arguing that it would trans- form the visual impact of the Cathe- dral beyond recognition. Before talking about the objections themselves: this is the second time the Foundation has proposed a new museum… suggesting that (from the Foundation's perspective) the project is a priority. Why, exactly, is it so necessary to build an extension to the museum to achieve this aim? "One of the responsibilities of any museum is to look after its artefacts, to study them, and to exhibit them in the best possible conditions for the enjoyment and knowledge of the public in general," she replies. "I think that's a good enough reason…" Perhaps it is, in generic terms. But we are also talking about a construc- tion project in the heart of Valletta, where (judging by other recent projects) any form of intervention is bound to cause controversy. Surely this is not in itself a bad thing, as it denotes concern with preserving cul- tural heritage… Cynthia De Giorgio nods. "Yes. I do understand the concern. Change is hard to accept. But you have to weigh that change against the ben- efits to be gained. I'm sure that once the project is ready, and people go into that chamber, and see all the tapestries together, they are going to be really impressed. I for one have never seen them all together, and I'm the museum curator…" The remaining tapestries are cur- rently in storage, she adds. "The truth is we are not giving these works of art the importance they deserve. And it reflects on how poorly we value our cultural heritage, if we don't exhibit them in the best possible manner. We are talking about the largest complete set of Flemish tapestries in the world: over 780 square me- tres in total, woven on the 'modelli' designed by Peter Paul Rubens – one of the most important Flemish artists of the Baroque. We have his works of art here in Malta, and we are keeping them dispersed in different rooms, in conditions where they cannot be viewed properly. Nor do we get an impression of what this gift was meant to be, and how awe-inspiring it was in its time. By keeping a piece here and a piece there, we are doing the collection a disservice…" The collection itself was a gift from newly elected Grand Master Perellos in 1697. They were commissioned the following year: and such was the scale of the order that the entire weaving industry of Brussels had to be enlisted to meet the demand. De Giorgio invites me to consider what the undertaking would have meant for the time. "Every Grand- master was obliged, and wanted, to give a gift to St John's. And they competed amongst themselves. In those days, exuberance and opu- lence and ostentation were not just tolerated, but expected. This is the Baroque phase we are talking about. Today's values have changed. Today, if you're ostentatious, it's considered bad taste. Back then, it was the other way round. If you didn't, for instance, wear the longest possible wig – a sign of magisterial grace – people would say you didn't think enough of your- self. This is why Perellos wanted to give an exceptional gift…" The Grandmaster was however confronted by an age-old problem: what can one possibly give to a re- cipient that already has everything you could dream of? "This was 1697, when the church itself was ready. Some of the tomb- stones were laid, the chapels were carved and gilded… everything we associate with St John's: the Mattia Pretis, the altar pieces, the Caravag- gio, the Oratory… they were already there. So it was pretty ingenious of him to manage to find a gift that would outshine everyone else. Who- ever conceived the idea – whether it was Perellos himself or any of his ambassadors – they really deserve to be applauded." Three hundred years later, she adds, Perellos's gift still has the pow- er to fascinate. "We've had art histo- rians who have come over from Bel- gium to give lectures, and students who have done their PhDs on this collection. Artistically it is very im- Interview By Raphael Vassallo maltatoday, SUNDAY, 16 AUGUST 2015 How to weave a Flemish PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAY ATTARD