Solo Exhibition by Maltese Artist Antoine Paul Camilleri at il-Kamra ta’ Fuq This January
Poġġejt għax għajjejt, a solo exhibition by Maltese artist Antoine Paul Camilleri, will be held at il-Kamra ta’ Fuq, Mqabba, from 4 to 18 January 2026, with an opening on Sunday 4 January from 11am to 2:30pm. Curated by Melanie Erixon, the exhibition brings together sculptures, drawings, and mixed-media works that reflect on rest, stillness, and the quiet beauty of simply sitting down and letting go.
Antoine Paul Camilleri’s exhibition explores that beautiful, almost meditative feeling of simply sitting down and letting go. That moment when all you wish for is a place to sit, and once you settle in, every bone in your body begins to release tension.
The idea for this exhibition emerged during a studio visit by curator Melanie Erixon. While brainstorming with the artist for this solo show, she noticed Camilleri’s numerous sculptures of figures sitting down, some on chairs, some lying down, others relaxing in a bath, and some tenderly caressing a cat. The works presented in the exhibition span ceramics, bronze, and drawings, all capturing these intimate moments of pause.
The exhibition celebrates the art of ‘doing nothing’, learning to resist the constant impulse to be productive every moment of the day. It invites us to sit without our phones, like these sculpted figures, and simply notice the people and things around us, and allow ourselves to think.
Ultimately, through these works, Camilleri encourages us to slow down, relax, and savour the joy of il dolce far niente.
Camilleri was born in August 1959, one of five children. At a young age he was apprenticed to his father, the late Antoine Camilleri, one of Malta’s most impactful modern artists. At Upper secondary school he studied under artist Esprit Barthet and took pottery classes with the much-admired ceramist, Gabriel Caruana.
He has participated in several collective exhibitions and has also held a number of solo shows. His work spans a wide range of media, including pen and ink drawings, acrylic paintings, etchings, watercolours, glass fusion combined with metal sculpture, and ceramics. Now retired, he is able to focus fully on painting and sculpture from his studio in Pembroke.
