As with each annual College Art Exhibition organised by Dr Charmaine Zammit and Mr Augusto Cardinali, Art Education Officers (EOs), at the Directorate for Early Years, Languages and Humanities (DELH) within the Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation (MEYR), this year’s exhibition reflects Gozo College’s theme FLIMKIEN.
The purpose of the annual college art exhibition is neither to promote artworks for sale nor to showcase individual talents in a competitive context, but rather to provide students with the opportunity to present their creative work within a public space. Shaped by both individual and collaborative perspectives, emotion, imagination, and creativity, the exhibited artworks extend learning beyond the classroom, offering viewers a reflective and educational experience.
The Art EOs co-organised the Gozo College exhibition together with Dr Alice Micallef, the Director (DELH) (MEYR), Dr Sean Zammit, Head of College Network for Gozo, Mr Ruben Mercieca, Education Officer Curriculum for Gozo, and the Art Head of Department Mr Lino Xerri. The Gozo College Art Exhibition, FLIMKIEN, creatively set up by the art teachers, was launched on the 17th of April 2026 at the Astra Theatre, Victoria, Gozo.
Gozo College comprises 11 primary schools (in Għajnsielem, Għarb, Kerċem, Nadur, Qala, San Lawrenz, Sannat, Victoria, Xagħra, Xewkija, and Żebbuġ), as well as a middle school and a secondary school in Victoria. Sir M.A. Refalo Sixth Form also participated in the exhibition. In total, 14 schools—spanning primary, middle, secondary, and post-secondary levels—collaborated on this exhibition.
The Gozo College exhibition celebrates the creative engagement of students across Gozo College, showcasing a wide range of interdisciplinary art practices grounded in collaboration, identity, and a sense of community. Drawing on both traditional and contemporary approaches, students explored diverse materials and techniques, including ceramics, painting, coloured pencils, acrylic markers, make-up, symbolic costumes, plaster of Paris, casting, pottery, mould-making, clay modelling, weaving, installations, collage, reused materials and performance art.
Right from the beginning of the scholastic year 2025-2026, the Gozo sixth-form lecturer Mr Mario Cassar and Gozo College Art teachers— Mr Christopher Saliba, Mr Martin Attard, Mr Lino Xerri, Mr Victor Agius, Mr Brendan Buttigieg, Ms Margaret Vella, Mr George James Cutajar, Ms Carmen Karen Galea Mizzi, and Ms Charlene Muscat. guided their students’ creative process for this exhibition. Following the Art teachers’ choice of the overall exhibition theme FLIMKIEN, together with their students they came up with sub-themes relevant to students’ own ways of interpreting ‘together’ in life.
Responding to the subtheme “Past Patterns, Present Voices,” students from Nadur, Għajnsielem, and Żebbuġ Primary Schools explored Maltese patterned tiles by reinterpreting them in their own styles. These were assembled into a collaborative collage symbolising unity through diverse artistic voices. At Għarb Primary School, students addressed “Together We Stand” by creating individual ceramic pieces that were later assembled into totem poles representing communities and shared stories.
At Qala Primary School, the subtheme “Connected” inspired students to create a hanging sculpture made of individually painted acrylic discs linked with transparent nylon thread, symbolising networks of ideas and relationships. San Lawrenz Primary students engaged in a weaving project using cotton, exploring the traditional craft of ‘Nisġa’ while learning about its cultural significance. Xagħra Primary students interpreted “Together” through chalk designs on dark cardstock, later combined into a unified collage.
Students from Kerċem, Xewkija, and Nadur Primary Schools collaborated on “Heartbeat of a Community,” creating an installation of concentric hearts using painted pebbles and tealight candles. Each element symbolises individual and collective contributions, inviting viewers to reflect, feel, and connect. Students from Victoria and Ta’ Sannat Primary Schools, inspired by the subthemes “Mini City of Ideas” and “Our Shared Sky,” explored shared dreams by collaborating on large-scale artworks that connect their hopes and visions for the future.
Some students at Agius De Soldanis middle school explored “Butterflies Reaching High” creating vibrant patterns of butterflies using cardboard and paints. Further collaboration included butterfly patterns created by primary school students who participated in art workshops during this school’s Open Day. The idea of using the same form, namely the butterfly, represents the unity among various schools within the college. Other students developed gypsum silhouette works based on traced body forms, while pottery club participants created figurative clay sculptures representing relationships between humans, animals, and nature. The “Beans Project” extended this idea of interconnectedness by inviting audiences to take part of the artwork comprising of clay casts of beans, as a symbolic reminder of collective growth.
Secondary students at Ninu Cremona School explored “United Together in Making a Better Community” by transforming reclaimed pallets into a triptych installation, expressing values of inclusivity and social responsibility. At post-secondary level, students from Sir M. A. Refalo presented “Torn Yet Tied,” a contemporary performance piece combining make-up, costume, and movement to explore themes of unity, separation, and continuity.
Overall, the Gozo College Art Exhibition highlights the importance of collaborative learning and creative exploration. It provided a meaningful platform for students and teachers to engage in shared artistic processes, communicate ideas, feelings, imagination while reflecting on the value of coming ‘together’ through art.
Dr Charmaine Zammit (Art Education Officer)
MINISTRY FOR EDUCATION, SPORT, YOUTH, RESEARCH AND INNOVATION (MEYR)
Directorate for Early Years, Languages and Humanities (DELH)
