About the Artist
Artist Statement
I paint the physical and figurative landscape of the Maltese islands – this is where I was born and the place I call home. I am drawn especially to our natural environment and to our cultural heritage as manifested in our rural villages and historical cities. Our rugged countryside, majestic cliffs, the different rock formations that dot the coast, the vastness of the sea that makes up for the limited land - these are the places I feel most connected with. In my paintings I try to capture my experience of a particular place and its atmosphere as coloured by a particular time of day, season or weather.
My medium of choice is watercolour. I am fascinated by its fluidity and transparency but also for its unpredictability. I love the challenge that it brings to my painting process, the dance of pigment and water across the paper, inviting me to coax it into shape but also to let it surprise me with results that I didn’t anticipate.
Biography
Malta-based painter, Joanne Scerri Valentino creates atmospheric landscapes working in watercolours. Her work focuses on capturing the mood of landmarks around the Maltese islands as experienced during different times of the day or as marked by the seasons. Her work explores themes of resiliency, especially how natural and manmade materials have withstood the test of time. The protagonists in her paintings are often flora and fauna characteristic of the Islands that continue to thrive in an increasingly drier, harsher climate.
Although Joanne has always been deeply creative, life’s practicalities led her to a professional career in marketing, then in an educational setting before shifting her focus more recently to her artistic development. Joanne earned her Honours Degree in Communication Studies from the University of Malta in 1992 and worked for over fifteen years in the marketing industry. Years later, she would return to University to a Diploma in Inclusive Education in 2014 following which she worked as a support educator for ten years at St. Aloysius College.
Her love for art, however, has been a steady companion throughout her life. She followed evening classes at the Malta School of Arts in her teens and was later tutored by Pawlu Grech and Anton Calleja as an adult. In recent years she has dedicated more time to honing her artistic skills, studying with the Virtual Art Academy. In 2023 she started to showcase her art and her works can be found in private collections in Malta, UK and Canada.
Exhibitions
February 2025 - Landscapes, Seascapes and Imaginary [E]scapes
A collective exhibition in aid of the Malta Community Chest Fund, at the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta. Curated by Melanie Erixon.
April 2025 - Collectively Solo IV
A collective exhibition held at Gallery 23, Balzan. Curated by Rachel Said and Alexia G Littlejohn.
October 2025 - Chiaroscuro
A collective exhibition that formed part of the Three Palaces Festival, Malta. Curated by Michelle Castelletti.
December 2025 - 50x50
A collective exhibition at ChristineX Gallery, Sliema. Curated by Christine Seidu Xuereb.
December 2025 - Collectively Solo V
A collective exhibition held at Gallery 23, Balzan. Curated by Rachel Said and Alexia G Littlejohn.
