Vassallo Group launched an art initiative to mark its 75th anniversary

Zvart is a new initiative taken by Vassallo Group of Companies to mark this year’s 75^th anniversary.

Zvart, an acronym for Zaren Vassallo Art (initiative), encourages companies within the Group to invest in pieces of art to adorn property owned by the Group or property in which the Group is currently operating.

The initiative was launched by Group chairman Nazzareno Vassallo last December during a short ceremony in which a painting of Vassallo’s late brother and former shareholder, Cikku Vassallo by Mosta artist Dione Borg, was unveiled at Villa Amodeo, the office of the Group chairman.

Learning Works, the education arm of the Group, was the first company within the Group to participate in this initiative. On the second anniversary of its incorporation on 4 February the company inaugurated a work of art by renowned ceramist Paul Haber titled Gaining strength. This piece comprises coiled forms partly glazed with layers of thick stoneware glaze. It was one of the exhibits in the seventh edition of ArtCeram 2020, which was held last year in the city of Sèvres, France. It was also exhibited in the Colours of Malta at the Mairie du Louvre town hall, right opposite the Louvre Museum in Paris, in 2018. The exhibition was curated by art critic and collector Olivier Plique.

When unveiling the piece in the presence of artist Haber and his wife Joan, the Group chairman stressed that the aim of Zvart is to adorn all Group property with works of art by local artists over a period of time. In this way the Group would not only be supporting local art but also enriching its properties across all its subsidiary companies. He remarked that the name of the piece, Gaining strength, is very appropriate because it reflects the Group’s strategy to gain strength with each and every step it took over the last 75 years. It also ties in nicely with the fact that Learning Works is growing into a robust education institution offering a variety of accredited programmes in different areas and which will be spreading further its wings in the coming years.

Learning Works CEO Charlo Bonnici, who is also the chairperson of Zvart, explained that as a company, which is also licensed as a Further and Higher Education institution, Learning Works wanted to make a significant contribution to the scheme because it also believes in sending out the message that art and the appreciation of art is intrinsically connected to the intellectual growth of the individual.

Other works of art that have been commissioned by the different companies within the Group will be unveiled in the coming months as part of the Group’s 75^th anniversary programme.