Speaker: Mary Rose Rivett-Carnac
3 October 2023
Art UK is a unique and ambitious project set up to catalogue paintings held in public collections across the United Kingdom. Remarkably, around 80% of these paintings are held in storage and rarely seen (www.artuk.org). Art UK has uncovered many works relating to Malta, either by Maltese artists or by visiting British artists. Links between Great Britain and Malta go back hundreds of years. Its history is recorded in fascinating paintings ranging from the Great Siege of 1565 to the devastating bombardment in WW2 following which the islanders’ heroism was recognised in a unique way by King George VI. Other paintings portray Malta’s people, palaces, historic cities and unforgettable sea views.
Profile
Mary Rose gained an MA in Victorian Art and Literature at Royal Holloway, University of London. In 2007 she started working part-time for the Public Catalogue Foundation, now called Art UK. She is an accredited lecturer for The Arts Society and has given lectures all over the UK and in Europe. In 2020 she presented eight lectures in New Zealand via Zoom webinar. Mary Rose is a volunteer guide at Turner’s House in Twickenham and Dorich House Museum in Kingston. She is also a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Arts Scholars, one of the City of London’s livery companies.