Richard England to give talk on ‘The Spirit of Place + Places of the Spirit’

On Friday, 27 June, eminent Maltese architect Richard England will be giving a talk entitled The Spirit of Place + Places of the Spirit under the auspices of Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar (FAA). This talk will take place at the recently-inaugurated Society of Christian Doctrine Conference Centre at Santa Venera designed by Richard England.

The talk of interest to the general public as well as those in the architectural field, will focus on Richard England’s early work and religious buildings, relating particularly to the Spirit of Place, ranging from the early Manikata Church project to the most recent Water Chapel in the Dar Il-Ħanin Samaritan Complex garden.

Richard England will also present his later more eclectic projects including his proposals for the Valletta Opera House, his designs for a new Parliament building and his thinking on how spaces and colours created by the architect affect the behaviour and mood of those who spend time within them.

After the talk, the audience will have the opportunity to view the Dar Il-Ħanin Samaritan Conference Centre and enjoy a glass of wine and light refreshments in the enchanting surroundings of the complex’s meditation garden. Here Richard England has drawn on the ancient Persian theme of water as the giver of life, and enhanced his signature style with carefully-chosen trees and lush vegetation.

Richard England is an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and the present vicepresident of the International Academy of Architecture.

As the Conference Centre and meditation garden complex is not open to the public, FAA invites members of the public to be privileged to be among the first to see it.

Those attending the talk can book their place at www.faa.org.mt or by phoning on 2702 2777, and are requested to be seated by 7.45pm. A donation of €5 towards FAA’s medieval art restoration project is kindly solicited.

The Dar Il-Ħanin Samaritan can be found at Triq Palazz L-Aħmar, Santa Venera (third corner on the right past the Bank of Valletta Head Office heading towards Qormi).