The sea remains a major force in Cassar’s art. Most of the paintings exhibited at St James Cavalier were related also to underwater iconography sometimes fused with vegetation or a female figure. ‘An interesting example is a painting of a female nude in a seated, relaxed pose immersed underwater alongside a protuberant head and suction cups of the waving tentacles of a large octopus with gazing eyes, called Entanglement (CC 61, 2002).’12 In another particular painting, a strange face emerges out from the middle of exotic colourful flowers and leaves. She is looking to the left, towards the unconscious. She is the anima, the female soul of the artist, also his fate, and an eternal pattern that is mirrored in every mother, wife, and lover. C.G. Jung stated: ‘It belongs to him, this perilous image of Woman; she stands for the loyalty which in the interests of life he must sometimes forgo; she is the much needed compensation for the risks, struggles and sacrifices that all end in disappointment; she is the solace for all bitterness of life. And, at the same time, she is the great illusionist, the seductress, who draws him into life with her Maya … Because she is the greatest danger she demands from man his greatest, and if he has it in him, she will receive it.’13 Lussuria (CC 50, 2001) is the title of this painting, and it is one of the strongest and direct images coming out of the unconscious, without any kind of model from external reality and free from imitative conscious control, even though the title for this painting might convey a sexual connotation. One of the newest approaches to painting in the In Search for Newness exhibition was his portraiture. Cassar’s portraits were not painted in the traditional manner by focusing only on the person and natural colours, but rather give also importance to the background which for him is an essential aspect of the whole composition. Excellent examples are the portraits of Einstein (CC 54, 2002) and one of the artist’s father, Pupull (CC 49, 2001). Cassar is an excellent portrait painter and uses a distinct style. His earliest portraits include that of Fr. Marius Zerafa (CC 15, 1963), his sister, Rosette (CC 12, 1964), and others not included in this exhibition. But one of his best and most recent portraits is that of Cekkina (CC 81, 2008). The artist used a unique style and there is great realistic and accurate likeness of the sitter. The rich colourful palette applied to the paper and the delicate and intricate textures employed in the composition create an extraordinary aesthetic feeling not yet achieved by anyone else. I believe that no other Maltese artist yet managed to create such a distinctive approach to portrait-painting like Cassar. Plodding Along in Time (CC 68, 2005) was painted in 2005, and perhaps it is the best self-portrait ever made by Cassar. This portrait has a lot of meaning. It explains many aspects about the artist’s life. First, the spirals reveal the artist’s identity and symbolize the mysterious life of the early inhabitants of the Maltese islands. Secondly, in this painting one can observe that the artist is holding tightly to the spiral grid which is a symbol of protection. The artist is seen to be gazing from behind this screen to the outer-world of reality. It is a painting which expresses a dream-like vision of the artist’s experience of life. This work is emphatically poetic and an articulation and reconstruction of his memory. Amongst other works we find the exploration of subjects like fossilized leaves, seashells, birds and other living creatures. I consider that these works are archetypal images and symbolic remnants that emerge from the unconscious
Plodding along in time, The portrait features in detail (photo: artist's collection 2005)
Charles signing the portrait of Fr. Marius Zerafa (photo: artist's collection 1963)
Nature Blessed, inks on paper, 620 x 430mm, signed 2001, private collection
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