Rhea Micallef Gavin, Maltese, and based in London explores masculinity through fashion design, printmaking, and portraiture. Consistently exploring the relationship between societal identity and the fashion industry. Rhea investigates this discussion through delicate silhouette and bold colour using a range of media, oil, ink, acrylic, watercolour, and coal to create prints and create a collection. First solo exhibition was held at The Crypt, a leading jazz club in Camberwell, an artist at ‘Mxmen positive masculinity’ festival and was one of the artists in Woolwich's contemporary print fair 2019, the UK’s largest print fair. Her graduate collection, Maltese farmboy dreams of 70’s Hollywood is a unique story that depicts a young Maltese ‘’man’’ dreaming of escaping Mediterranean culture with acidic and sun saturated lands to the Wes Anderson symmetrical glamour and freedom of 70s Hollywood. A re-imagining of masculinity in response to today’s societal progression and what it means to be a non-conformist. Her aim is to bridge the gap between traditionalist methods such as painting, mono-printing, linocut, screenprinting, and foiling with fashions’ digital print and future technologies, such as Fashion avatar creation.

These methods encourage ‘’handmade’’ techniques of conceptual development through sampling and textiles yet once uploaded to the software she is able to express and question her design with more freedom to create. Fabrications would include popularly ‘’Mediterranean’’ light linens, cotton and silks, farmers’ denim, and cotton VS Hollywood’s Velvets. The aim is always an effortless Mediterranean elegance meets the strange and beautiful.