IN PHOTOS: Għarb’s Beautiful ‘Flower Carpets’ Have Established A Vibrant Culture Of Art
The Gozitan town of Għarb has once again been decorated with a beautiful ‘flower carpet’ display, known as the infiorata, ahead of Sunday’s feast of Corpus Christi.
The use of the infiorata for the feast of Corpus Christi is a tradition dating back to the 12th Century, having originated in the Vatican Basilica before spreading throughout the Catholic world.
In Għarb, the tradition dates back to 2003, when it created a carpet designed with flowers and bush branches to represent scenes, memories and anniversary dates. The tradition has since become a permanent feature of the town’s celebrations.
It began after the Għarb Local Council was twinned with a locality in Italy called Gerano and, by surprise, during the feast week, Mayor David Apap had an infiorata created to mark the Visitation feast on the occasion of the signing of the friendship pact.
This very first infiorata was designed by the talented artists Mario and his son Rueben Camilleri Cauchi – who went on to design the infiorata for several years after.
Għarb’s infiorata is made up of several materials such as flowers and other types of all-natural materials such as seeds, salt and coloured shavings. It is during the feast that Għarb centre is transformed into an art centre that seeks to leave visitors filled with emotion.
Recent years have seen the infiorata be designed by local artist Michael Bajada, who is part of The Infiorata Group. They form part of the international association Coordinadora Internacional de Entidades de Alfombristas that prepares and designs the carpet.
This year’s infiorata, pictured below, was designed with 900 bunches of carnations of various, beautiful colours.
Through Għarb’s introduction of the infiorata, a vibrant group of passionate artists have grown and established themselves within the locality – helping to further embrace this colourful, artistic display each year.
In fact, the infiorata is used throughout the year, for the celebration of Palm Sunday with coloured salt, for the feast of Corpus Christi with flowers and coloured sawdust and during the village feast, where it is decorated with rose petals.
Have you visited the Infiorata in Għarb?
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