Art and Medicine

Professor Mallia is Professor of Medicine at the University of Malta. He was previously Chairman of the Department of Medicine and Head of the Division of Rheumatology, which he founded, at St. Luke’s Hospital within the Department of Health. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of London and of Edinburgh and of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. He is a Knight of Magistral Grace of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.

 

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Sponsored by the Alfred Mizzi Foundation. The relationship between the Visual Arts (particularly painting) and Medicine is a topic that has, so far, received relatively little attention. However, the fact is that there are several areas of overlap between these two disciplines. The most obvious one is the depiction of disease or deformity in a work of art. In all likelihood such a defect would be present in the sitter and faithfully reproduced by the artist. The artist himself could be suffering from a medical condition that might have an effect on his works. This lecture will seek to explore such traits in various famous and less-known paintings, as well as other areas of overlap between Art and Medicine.

 

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