CAGED SPACES, Patrick J Fenech

Description

A collection of black-and-white photographs made by Patrick J Fenech during the late 1970s, into the 1980s and early 1990s; in and around the islands of Malta and Gozo. They show the laid-back lifestyles of the inhabitants during this liminal period of time. The 117 photographs in this book, selected from a large archive of mainly 35mm negatives, depict fleeting moments in a period of time, when the islands were in the process of shedding their colonial past and initiating a journey as an independent young Republic; at the turn of the millennium. Rather than forming a homogeneous visual narrative, this photographic documentary follows a non-linear and non-narrative style. The photographs capture the sun drenched environments where light penetrates into the darkest corners, creating an interplay between umbras and penumbras especially in the summer months. Moreover, the photographs are about a people whose ancestors, living in constant concern of being invaded, lived within bastion walls and fortified cities. This furnished the idea for the title of this collection, Caged Spaces.