An archive of black and white images depicting life in Malta and its rich architectural heritage during the 1960s, following independence from British rule, has been published in a book, Malta Through the Lens: David Wrightson.
The collection of images belonged to British architect and photographer David Wrightson, who was sent to Malta on an assignment during his 20s while studying in Rome, before recently handing over the negatives to the Malta Image Preservation Archive, to be digitised and safeguarded.
Born in Liverpool in 1940, Wrightson was immersed in the world of photography from an early age, and despite referring to himself as an enthusiastic but amateur photographer, his talent was recognised by Quentin Hughes, the first professor of architecture at the University of Malta in 1968.
“In 1964, [Quentin Hughes] hand-picked him while still an architecture student to provide photographs for two of his projects, Seaport: Townscape and Architecture of Liverpool and Fortress: Architecture and Military History in Malta. The book celebrates the Malta album of David Wrightson’s photography – a vital sliver of Maltese photographic and visual cultural heritage,” the publishers, Midsea Books, write of the publication.
Featuring over 150 black and white images, some of which have never been published before, ‘Malta Through the Lens’, conceived and edited by Charles Paul Azzopardi, serves as a poignant window into a period of the islands’ history and its architectural splendour, much of which has since been altered or altogether lost to time and progress.
Photography: David Wrightson / Midsea Books
