Apap the artist, who was to lead the Maltese sculpture in entirely new directions, was born in Valletta on the 13th November 1909. Apap started his studies by attending evening classes and in 1925 he attended the School of Art. In 1927 Apap won a scholarship to the British Academy in Rome and a year later he shared the first prize award in the prestigious Calderon Prize competition. Apap’s first public monument, (Fra Diego), carried out when he was only 22 years put the seal of public recognition on his reputation. Throughout the thirties Apap dominated the country’s artistic life and participated in every annual exhibition. In 1933 he was founder member of the Societa di Belle Arti and a year later he was appointed assistant modeling teacher at the School of Art and in 1947, head of school. Apap managed to obtain the patronage of British personalities in the colonial and armed services. As far back as 1930, Lt. Governor Sir Harry Luke commissioned a bust of his son. The result proved a resounding success. Luke introduced him to Lord Mountbatten, who took an immediate liking to Apap’s works, becoming one of his principal patrons. A good part of his work is still found in the collections of the Mountbatten family. The list of public monuments in Malta is outstanding. Two important exhibitions of his work were organized in London, the first one at the Commonwealth Institute in 1960 and the other in 1962 at the Grabowsky Gallery.

Apap married Maria Bencini and they have three children.