ART4MCCF

AFTERLIFE IDENTITY

AFTERLIFE IDENTITY

STEPHEN SALIBA

Medium: Stoneware, bone on acrylic sheet

Size: 50x60x15cm

Year: 2022

Artwork Description: Through this piece the artist questions the nature of our existence in the eventuality of the afterlife. Would humans retain their respective individual identities after death, or would we become indistinguishable even to our dearest ones? Using a real bone and a series of stoneware shapes, the artist provides an abstract composition alluding to the concept of death and the relationship between the entities. Each piece is in fact a sculpture in itself ultimately contributing to the final art piece.

€450

About

STEPHEN SALIBA

The artist is intrigued by the same sentiment expressed by Joan Miró - to attain the maximum of intensity with the minimum of means. At a young age and for many years to follow, Maestro Pawlu Grech was his tutor, mentor and friend guiding him in the formation of his artistic character through the mastering of various techniques, as well as continuous discussions together with other art and music students. In parallel to this, his academic and professional studies in environmental science provided a distinctive perspective of the world where scientific examination and observation lead to creative expression. The parallelism between the natural world and human experience is a recurring theme in his works. Through his ceramic works he transmits the inner preoccupations and fragility of the human soul. The soft clay medium, which is then stone fired, is in itself an allegory of one’s life challenges that mould every individual in a unique way. The artist plays with form and texture, limiting the use of colour, laying bare the organic core of the piece without any additional distractions.