The Schranz Family of Artists – A Journey of Rediscovery is a much awaited exhibition marking the bicentenary of the Schranz artists’ family’s arrival in Malta in 1818. This exhibition was inaugurated on Friday evening by Her Excellency Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, President of the Republic of Malta, at Fort St Elmo which will host the exhibition for the next three months.
This exhibition is hosting over 170 works of art ranging from oil paintings, watercolours, pen-and-washes, pencil and pen drawings, books, lithographs and photographs. The final selection was arrived at after a year and a half of rigorous sifting of well over 400 works. A susbstantial number of exhibited works are coming from private collections in Malta, from public art collections such as Heritage Malta, Palazzo Falson and the Mdina Cathedral Museum while important loans from the Victoria & Albert Museum, the UK Government Art Collection and Menorca’s Museo Militar de Menorca, Museo de Menorca and Ayuntamento de Ciutadella are also featuring.
The visitor has the unique opportunity to view various artistic talents of the Schranz family members spanning four generations. This exhibition promises to dispel the long established impression that paintings by the Schranz artists only portray naval and run-of-the-mill topographical subjects of Malta, since their repertoire of subjects extends to portraiture and landscape. It casts also light on the Schranz artists legacy, perpetuated also by the many students who attended classes in their respective studios in Valletta. A prime catalyst of this exhibition was Prof John J. Schranz, a 5th generation direct descendant of Anton Schranz through his first born son, Giovanni. In 2002, nineteen years after his father traced relatives still living in Germany, from where Anton originally hailed, Prof Schranz made it his mission to seriously embark on research on the artist-members of the family. This quest turned into the goal to commemorate their work in 2018, 200 years after Anton together with his family made Malta their home.
This exhibition is also another hallmark in the series of high standard exhibitions organised by the national agency for cultural heritage. Heritage Malta Chairman Dr Joseph M. Buttigieg stated that the national agency is proud that during this year when Valletta is Europe’s Capital of Culture it is offering the Maltese public the unprecedented opportunity to experience world class cultural heritage at home rather than having to travel around the globe in order to appreciate it.
A fully illustrated catalogue including interesting information about the Schranz family exhibition will be on sale from all Heritage Malta sites and museums for the price of €15 in the coming days.
‘The Schranz Family of Artists – A Journey of Rediscovery’ exhibition will remain open till mid-July 2018 and admission is included in Fort St Elmo’s regular ticket price. The fort opens daily between 9.00hrs and 17.00hrs, last admission at 16.30hrs, while from 1st April the fort will remain open till 18.00hrs, last admission at 17.30hrs.
