The next public lecture Il-Ħaġar Museum and Cultural Centre is presenting will take place this Thursday, the 18th of November at 7.30pm, by Rev. Geoffrey George Attard, on English poet, philologist and author J. R. R. Tolkien. Professor John Ronald Reuel Tolkien CBE FRSL (1892–1973) is best known as the author of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.
J. R. R. Tolkien: Literary Genius For Our Times promises yet another most interesting session. Canon Attard, a graduate at a number of British universities, is very interested in English culture. Attendance is free but seat bookings are requested at events@heartofgozo.org.mt. In the interest of all, a vacciniation certificate has to be produced at the door
Il-Ħaġar Museum and Cultural Centre is presenting a lecture entitled Joseph of Nazareth: A Man Worth Knowing by Il-Ħaġar founder and curator Mgr Dr Joseph Farrugia, on Saturday 13 November at 11:00.
The lecture, held concurrently with the temporary exhibition Joseph: The Silent Witness, also at Il-Ħaġar, promises to be a most interesting session since Mgr Farrugia has strong experience as a university lecturer in Theology.
Attendance is free but seat reservations are requested by sending an email to events@heartofgozo.org.mt. In the interest of all, a vacciniation certificate will be requested at the door.
Il-Ħaġar Museum is hosting an illustrated lecture by Dr Michela Fasce on Saturday 25 September at 7.30pm. A Università degli Studi di Genova graduate, Dr Fasce holds degrees in conservation science and art history, has a rich experience in restoration and consultancy, and founded the first diagnostics department in Italy.
Dr Fasce tends to focus on identifying materials and dates. On this occasion, she will be discussing Mattia Preti’s technique to explain the utility of diagnostic study. She will also be presenting her recent book in Italian Dentro il dipinto with its various related examples.
Moreover, she will be applying these principles to the restoration process on five oils by Filippo Fortunato Venuti. The restorer herself, Sara Mattioli, will explain the work she undertook over these months. This set of four ovals and a bozzetto will now revert to permanent display at Il-Ħaġar Museum.
Il-Ħaġar Restoration and Conservation Project is supported by Bank of Valletta and Valerio Ballotta of GBK Malta Ltd.
After the imposed hiatus, the resumption of public talks hosted at Il-Ħaġar
Museum will certainly be welcomed.
This Saturday, the 14th of November, at 10.30am, Malta’s premier cemetery,
the Addolorata, is being highlighted through
the participation of Mario Borg, Dr Mark Sagona and Prof Conrad Thake, authors
of a new detailed study about it. This occasion, in collaboration with the
University of Malta’s Department of Art and Art History, and Midsea Books, will
also be live-streamed.
Entrance is free but booking on events@heartofgozo.org.mt is recommended. Current social distancing restrictions mean that
seating will be limited.
Copies of The Addolorata Cemetery (well
over two hundred richly-illustrated pages) will be available at a special
price.
Dr Sebastiano D’Amico – from Malta University’s Geosciences
Department – will be asking “What is there under my feet?” at Il-Ħaġar museum
on 30 November at 11am. This instalment in the Saturday series of assorted
talks will discuss science at the service of Heritage exploration and
conservation.
The lecture, based on test sites in
Malta and abroad, treats the use of multidisciplinary scientific methods for
the benefit of all those concerned with cultural heritage sites.
Entrance is, as always, free of
charge. However, since places are obviously limited, those interested are encouraged to reserve seats by
emailing events@heartofgozo.org.mt.
Il-Ħaġar Museum has become well-known also for public talks on a wide range of topics.
The first public lecture after the summer break is to be delivered by the stepson of famous author C. S. Lewis. There is probably no need to refer to, for example, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Space Trilogy, and The Screwtape Letters.
Douglas Gresham, an actor and producer, has been studying and writing about Lewis and he will be talking about his adoptive father on Saturday 12 October at 11am.
Entrance is, as always, free of charge. However, since places are obviously limited, it is recommended to reserve seats by emailing events@heartofgozo.org.mt.
Queen Victoria was born two hundred years ago. Her connections with Gozo include the fact that the main town became a city and its name changed for her Golden Jubilee.
Naturally enough, Fondazzjoni Belt Victoria felt duty-bound to mark this bicentenary, choosing Saturday 1 June, about halfway between the actual date and Jum il-Belt Victoria.
This occasion, consisting of a talk about the Empress by Rev. Geoffrey George Attard and short readings from Victorian literature, starts at 11:00 and takes place on Level 3 at Il-Ħaġar Museum.
Saturday
11 May will see two events at Il-Ħaġar Museum and Cultural Centre.
At 11:00, Professor Arnold Cassola will be
giving a lecture in English on a topic he has researched so much, entitled Suleiman the Magnificent and Malta.
At 19:30
Valerio Ballotta of GBK Malta Ltd and Obiettivo Qatar will be interviewing, in
Italian, Arialdo Ceribelli of Bergamo’s Galleria Ceribelli. Mr Ceribelli will be reminiscing about his
friend Gianfranco Ferroni, the important artist who died in 2001. This will be followed by a tour of the
exhibition consisting of Ferroni works, including etchings and lithographs, as
well as others by Walter Coccetta. Ferroni & Coccetta: Exploring Light at
Il-Ħaġar Museum runs until 13 June.
Entrance
is, as always, free of charge but reserving a seat on events@heartofgozo.org.mt
is recommended.
World-renowned Maltese tenor Joseph Calleja visits Il-Ħaġar Museum on Friday 30 November, to talk about his illustrious career at a public dialogue which starts at 18:30. Calleja, who made his operatic debut at Teatru Astra in Gozo in 1997, will be interviewed by former Times of Malta editor Steve Mallia.
During his visit to Il-Ħaġar Museum, the Maltese Tenor is expected to pay tribute to Mro Joseph Vella at the latter’s Music Archive, inaugurated in February this year, on Level 3. He will also have the opportunity to view the temporary exhibition Teatru Astra: Gozo’s Trailblazer, marking the theatre’s golden jubilee.
Entrance and participation at this event are free of charge. However, due to space being limited, booking is essential. Seat reservations can be made by emailing events@heartofgozo.org.mt.
Professor Joseph M. Pirotta treats ‘Independence: Borg Olivier, Mintoff and Gonzi’ at a public talk on Saturday 30 March 2019 at 11:00, at Il-Ħaġar – Heart of Gozo Museum. Entrance is, as usual, free of charge but booking is recommended.
