Picture this: a quiet afternoon in Rabat’s old town. You’re wandering through the narrow, sun-drenched streets, the scent of fresh bread wafting from a nearby bakery. Suddenly, you stumble upon a window display that stops you in your tracks. It’s not the usual tourist knick-knacks or traditional Maltese lace. Instead, you’re greeted by a surreal scene, a strange blend of the familiar and the fantastical. This, my friends, is the world of Josette Fenech.

Josette Fenech is no stranger to Malta’s art scene. Her work, a unique blend of realism and surrealism, has been gracing local galleries and exhibitions for years. But it’s her latest collection, ‘Liminal Landscapes’, that’s been causing quite a stir. Housed in the quaint little gallery on St. Lucy Street, these paintings are a testament to Fenech’s ability to blur the lines between reality and fantasy.

Fenech’s process is as intriguing as her final product. She starts with photographs she’s taken around Malta – the rugged cliffs of Dingli, the quiet streets of Mdina, the bustling markets of Marsaxlokk. Then, she transforms them into something else entirely. “I take these ordinary scenes and imbue them with a sense of the extraordinary,” she explains. “I want viewers to question what they’re seeing, to wonder if they’re looking at a photograph or a dream.”

Fenech’s choice of subject matter is deeply rooted in her love for Malta. “Malta is full of liminal spaces,” she says, “Places that exist between two worlds – the old and the new, the real and the imagined. I try to capture that in my art.”

Take her painting ‘Between the Walls’, for instance. It’s a depiction of a quiet alley in Valletta, but the perspective is all wrong. The walls lean in at impossible angles, the shadows stretch out like tendrils. It’s a scene that’s both familiar and disconcerting, a visual representation of Malta’s complex history and culture.

Fenech’s work isn’t just about creating pretty pictures. It’s about holding a mirror up to reality and twisting the reflection just enough to make us see things differently. “Art has the power to challenge our perceptions, to make us question what we think we know,” she says. “That’s what I strive to do with my work.”

And she’s not wrong. Her paintings do make you question. They make you look twice, tilt your head, squint your eyes. They make you see the ordinary in a new light. And isn’t that what art is supposed to do?

So, the next time you’re wandering through Malta’s streets, keep an eye out for those liminal spaces. You never know when you might stumble upon another one of Josette Fenech’s surreal landscapes. And who knows? You might just see your reality a little differently afterwards.