Ainhoa
Priscilla Ainhoa Griscti was born in the Basque region of Spain in 1985, in a tiny village called Oropesa del Mar where her parents were living at the time. Despite only spending a few months there as a baby, Ainhoa’s profound attraction to Spain is markedly evident through the use of her artistic name ’’Ainhoa’’, a common name for women in the Basque region.
Ainhoa’s passion for art developed with her, growing as she grew, becoming intricately linked to her persona, her feelings, and her emotions. Although wonderfully surreal, her art finds many connections to the real world, to the things that incite the artist’s inspiration such as antiques objets d’art to which the artist was exposed as from a very tender age through her father, a prominent local antiquarian, who would expose his daughter to various, different, fascinating and unusual antiques.
Based in Malta, Ainhoa began her secondary education at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, where she found herself in an environment that urged her towards creativity. In her school breaks she often withdrew from the crowds into the safe haven offered to her by the art room, in which she would draw, and paint freeing her imagination. At fourteen years of age, Ainhoa attended the Malta Government School of Art which gave her a firm grounding in academic art. At sixth form she entered De La Salle College, taking art as her main subject whilst evolving a more liberal style and expression. During this time, she joined other local contemporary artists in life figure drawing at various studios on the island, where she acquired a more profound knowledge of anatomy and acquired a heightened sensitivity towards the nude figure. Also during this time, Ainhoa began working in ceramics and clay sculpture.
At eighteen years of age, Ainhoa held her first solo exhibition entitled ‘Hidden Illusions’ at Hotel Le Meridien Phoenicia in Valletta. The show displayed surrealist works of metamorphosed animals in human portraiture, powerfully expressing nature’s destructive force. ‘Hidden Illusions’ received a positive response from local and foreign art critics and media alike.
In 2007, Ainhoa formed part of the ISIDEM workshop held by the internationally reknown contemporary artist Sancho Silva. This workshop was followed with a collective exhibition of installations entitled ‘60×60x60’ at Biagio Steps in Valletta. In 2008, Ainhoa attended the SACI Malta Restoration Internship run by Roberta Lapucci and carried on practical work on the restoration of the ‘The Baptism of Christ’ by Mario Minniti.
Also in 2008, Ainhoa took Malta by storm in another solo exhibition which she called ‘Anima del Circo’. The exhibition, held at the Malta Maritime Museum in Birgu, lasted over two months and captures the attention of various art enthusiasts, followers, and collectors. The show avidly displayed large scale works in mixed media that dealt with the concept of the tragedy of human existence through the image of the circus clown. Throughout the years, Ainhoa also took part in a number of collective exhibitions and held many solo shows in prominent galleries and locations such as the Casino di Venezia in Vittoriosa, the Corinthia Palace Hotel in Balzan, and Le Meridien Phoenicia in Valletta amongst others. In March 2011, Ainhoa was chosen as one of the winners in Saatchi’s online competition and was given the opportunity to exhibit at the ‘ARTPARIS’ show at the Grand Palais in Paris, France.
Ainhoa also achieved two degrees from the University of Malta; a B.A.(Hons.) and an M.A. in Art History.
