Solo exhibition il-ħajja explores narratives transmitted through the cycle of life

Focusing on the depictions of life and essential states of being, il-ħajja explores narratives transmitted through various elements associated with the cycle of life through materiality, symbolism and sculpture. The body of work presented by Mario Agius investigates what it is to be human, showcasing a certain affinity to the natural processes of human development and life through its primarily expressionistic nature. At heart to the artist’s work is an exploration of figurative elements as vessels for the eternal soul, where various representations of the body are direct reflections of fundamental human experiences, spirituality and emotions. The artist also brings to focus and questions anthropocentric subjects about the nature of existence and reality through the use of natural materials such as wood, stone and marble. 

The essential states of being such as birth, youth, procreation and old age also allude to the artist’s inner psychological thoughts and personal experiences, transposing the exhibition to an introspective and a process of self-reflection. Agius further resorts to mimetic tendencies as they appear in nature tending towards the humanistic and naturalistic which are conveyed through sculptural elements and articulated with flowing and continuous lines. Alluding to primitive sculpture, the parallelisms conveyed between the reflections on the essential meanings of life and their interpretation are guided by the haptic suggestiveness of tree trunks and natural rock formations. The intuitive projections of the artist’s inner sensations also draw in the concept of empathy, whereby the artistic process is driven by the artist’s previous cognitive experiences which subjected him to develop and define his repertory of physical manifestations. Exploited by prehistoric artists and also primitive art styles such as African art,  the inherent form of tree trunks facilitates the production of figurative forms, the soul of the tree itself projected through humanistic representations.