A gentle day in Malta today with a very special highlight. We went into Valletta and visited the National Museum of Fine Arts. There was the fairly predictable collection of religious paintings by Maltese and Italian artists especially, all fairly dark but the detail was still possible to appreciate. Some of the paintings date from the 14th Century. There was a collection of modern bronzes in a lovely sunlit courtyard but the room that attracted me was a collection of pictures of the Grand Harbour of Malta and the surrounding area. There were some lovely, understated watercolour and ink sketches by
Edward Lear (probably better known for writing limericks and The Owl and the Pussycat) and there was a tiny watercolour jewel,
View of the Grand Harbour painted by Joseph Mallard William Turner in 1830.
It was exquisite and worth the admission to the museum on it's own. Here's a link to an article about the loaning of the painting to the museum
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20030321/local/turner-painting-of-grand-harbour-on-display.154041
This afternoon we returned to our hotel and I stitched and enjoyed the sunshine while Al studied the Arriva website - the bus "timetables" change tomorrow, it could be a chaotic day on Malta's roads!
What a beautiful painting, Lis. I see what you mean about it being worth the entry price all by itself - and Turner no less! Did you buy a print. It's one that would be lovely to have as a souvenir.
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