Giuseppe Bonnici : a critical appreciation and an annotated gazetteer of his works and an appendix on Aristide Bonnici

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to present a complete biography and a critical appreciation of the paintings of Giuseppe Bonnici and an appendix regarding the artistic works of Aristide Bonnici. This study focuses mainly on the works of these artists around the Maltese islands. However, documented works of Giuseppe Bonnici in foreign countries extend my research outside the Maltese parameters. This will in any case offer a point of departure for future study. This dissertation seeks to come to terms with the output of these artists and to do justice with their works. A high percentage of this research is original. Considerable amount of the Bonnici's works have never come to light, or else were wrongly attributed. Certain biographical details are equally elusive. It is one of the main goals of this art historical study to evaluate properly the artistic value of these works without over or underestimating them as some authors have done in the past. These scarcely researched artists have only drawn attention to very few art historians whose writings remained always limited to a general overview. Moreover, these writings are based almost completely on l 9th century secondary sources at times repeating even the same mistaken information. As regarding Giuseppe Bonnici, the most important among the latter nineteenth century writings are by Achille Ferres, Pietro Paolo Castagna and Giovanni Faure. However, none of these secondary sources gives mention to the works of Aristide Bonnici.