The Calabrian artist, Mattia Preti, lived in Malta for almost forty years in the second half of the seventeenth century. In 1642, he was invested as a knight of the Order of St John and his artworks adorn some of the most significant religious buildings on the island. Outside Malta, Preti is perhaps best known as one of the last Italian followers of Caravaggio.
Archival material about Preti’s life offers a window into the cosmopolitan, multicultural nature of Maltese society. On the one hand, his career success depended on a network of influential, international patrons. On the other, he shared his household with several enslaved servants and apprentices from North Africa and Turkey, whom he eventually freed. Through Preti’s experiences, this talk will explore how different segments of the population intermingled in his adopted hometown of Valletta, and the impact that this had on his artistic output.
The speaker will be introduced by Flora Dennis, Deputy Director of the Warburg Institute. The event takes place in conjunction with the launch of Elizabeth Currie’s Street Style: Art and Dress in the Time of Caravaggio (Reaktion, 2025).
Dr Elizabeth Currie is an author and lecturer specializing in the history of dress and textiles. She teaches at Central Saint Martins and is a Visiting Research Fellow at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Her publications include Fashion and Masculinity in Renaissance Florence (2016).
Street Style: Art and Dress in the Time of Caravaggio will be available for purchase on the evening, and a selection of artworks from the Museum of the Order of John's collection, not usually on display, will be available to view.
Image credit: Mattia Preti, A Man Cutting Tobacco (1660s),Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.
