Maltese artists Debbie Bonello is currently showing a new body of work, making it her fourth solo exhibition, bringing together paintings created entirely on location across the Maltese Islands and neighbouring Sicily.Titled OUTDOORS and curated by Charlene Vella, the exhibition features works produced over the past two years, many of them painted during the summer months she spends in Sicily.As its title suggests, OUTDOORS saw Bonello move the studio directly into the landscape, painting in front of her subjects and responding to the changing conditions around her.Her latest works explore the balance between abstraction and representation through swift, intuitive, expressive brushwork, capturing shifting light, lengthening shadows, and changing weather as they unfold.Weather itself becomes an important part of the collection, with the intense August heat, Mediterranean sunlight and hazy conditions brought by the sirocco influencing Bonello’s palette and approach to paint.The exhibition also marks a noticeable shift from her previous solo show, Crowded.While human figures played an important role in that body of work, they have now disappeared entirely, allowing the landscapes, backgrounds and outdoor settings to become the main subjects.The result is a collection centred on colour, texture, atmosphere and the fleeting nature of painting directly from life.Behind the apparent spontaneity of the works is a process that demands close observation, physical stamina and sustained concentration, with each painting preserving a particular encounter between artist, place and time.OUTDOORS will be on display throughout October at the Palm Court Lounge at The Phoenicia Malta.Will you be checking out Debbie Bonello’s latest exhibition this October?•