Liliana Fleri Soler: 'I have always loved drawing and making things—it’s just something that has always been a part of me'

7 questions for ... artist Liliana Fleri Soler

Liliana Fleri Soler
Liliana Fleri Soler

Liliana Fleri Soler is a Maltese artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans sculpture, painting, installation, and assemblage. Her work delves deeply into the human experience, often blending abstraction with figuration and incorporating surrealist elements inspired by the human form, animals, and botany. With a foundation in both art and science, her creations reflect a unique synthesis of intuition and inquiry.  Her solo exhibition, titled Fuq, fil-Kamra, is on till 8 June at il-Kamra ta’ Fuq, Mqabba.

1. What’s been the most defining moment in your career so far?

It is difficult to pinpoint specific moments. One simply works project by project and learns that there is no particular triumph or success. Art is just a way of life, an expression of one’s self.

2. As an artist, how do you navigate the world and speed of social media?

I actually do not make enough use of social media and I am not proud of this, as for me it is a struggle. I do not have a website and my online presence is undeveloped. I hope to work on it but time is always a limiting factor and I end up spending more time on the ‘making part’. I guess that in this respect, I am not at all up to date.

Prinċipessa
Prinċipessa

3. Do you consider artificial intelligence a threat to your career, or an opportunity?

I am sure that AI will be a useful tool to humanity in many ways. I do not know enough to have an opinion on how it will affect the art world. Being 60 years old, I have experienced that life is never static but in continuous flux and that things do not depend on the individual but on the population. It is just an evolution and survival of the fittest. Anyway, I have loved science fiction and now I am living to see it come to real life. It’s daunting but exciting!

4. How do you stay motivated and inspired, especially during tough times or when the work feels hard?

Yes, this is a good one! Reality! Life is tough and sometimes life is tougher and even more, sometimes it is tough for stretches of time. Well, one has to live day by day and task by task. It is amazing that one is still capable of creating and working but it is possible. There are days when it is not possible because other things take priority. At times, one takes out the sketch book and just pours one’s thoughts in words or images. Sometimes one is in a void and you just float around. I think the lifeline is belief in something beyond self. Less ego and doing something for others—a giving gesture.

5. How do you balance your creative instincts with the expectations of your audience or collaborators?

There are different approaches to this. In my case, science and teaching were my balance. I was also lucky to be able to incorporate my creativity into many design projects. I think once again, the key is balance. Of course, I am at my happiest when I go into my own personal world of imagination.

Alka
Alka

6. How do you approach a new project? Do you have a specific process or routine you follow?

Reading, writing, sketching until the idea becomes clear, and then expanding on particular points, formulating the story. Of course, the practical part is sourcing the materials and then starting to build, depending on what medium I am going to use. I would like to add that at the beginning of a project, there is always a fear and a tendency to procrastinate due to being afraid of not being up to the project! So it’s not always as simple as it may sound but it’s always the same feeling… fear.

7. Can you let us in on some of the future projects, works?

So many ideas and projects! Some I have already started and are waiting to be expanded upon, some are still in my mind or notes and sketches in my notebooks, and more and more keep being born in my mind, but time is always the limiting factor, and also funds and so they pile up in a never ending line. I hope to contribute to the next biennale in some way or another. At this point in my life, I must admit that energy and mobility have started to become a reality. It would be so good if one had assistants. One could do much more, producing more work and creating more. Apprenticeship is such an ancient but good idea where the elder is assisted and in exchange imparts one’s accumulated knowledge before the ravages of old age make it disappear once and for all! Here, humanity is losing momentum. Perhaps, this is one way in which artificial intelligence will be applied to store and process information and come up with faster solutions in all fields of technology, creativity, and medicine. It would be a good thing!

Afrodita
Afrodita

Who are your biggest influences, and how have they shaped your work?

I have always loved drawing and making things—it’s just something that has always been a part of me. My mother was super creative; always busy sewing, knitting, crocheting and even doing a bit of carpentry. So, I grew up around that kind of hands-on making. In terms of art, I am very much inspired by artists such as Kiki Smith, Louise Bourgeois, Marina Abramovic and the female surrealists. I love how their work is personal, emotional, and often a bit raw. I have also been fascinated by ancient Egyptian and Hellenistic art. Medieval manuscripts and painters like Giotto and El Greco also inspire me—their style, symbolism, and even the colour palettes have sneaked into my work in some way or other.