“The luxuriant and voluptuous flood

Of sweet sensations battling with blood”

"Ode to Venice" by Lord Byron

 

Venice is a primordial organism in constant transformation. It contains within itself multiple layers of history, its soul passes through the natural elements of the sea, of the stone with the fossils contained within it, of its islands, of the dunes, of its unique architecture and then returns to nature again. Everything we see in the lagoon is in constant search of balance to maintain its existence. The sand transforms into glass, the glass shatters and disintegrates, returning to sand, forming the soil of the island itself.

The Venetian lagoon has flourished thanks to its water connections: the flooded areas have historically constituted a barrier to invasions and the waterways have favored the development of trade. At the same time, the Venetian islands are constantly threatened by the water itself, with its erratic mood of ups and downs, a situation that is getting increasingly worse due to climate change and mass tourism.

Nature and human traces coexist in my project. Plants and algae are represented as part of a primordial organism in continuous transformation and adaptation. The buildings, which at first glance may seem solid, are represented in a dimension of ephemeral stability, like a modern Atlantis, destined to disappear swallowed up by the waves.

Among the main inspirations of the project is the book Hypnerotomachia Polifili by the Venetian writer Francesco Colonna published in 1499. Just as the main character of the book was looking for his beloved in a dream, in my Venetian dream I am looking for Venice itself, the whose soul rises from the depths of the lagoon painting landscapes, buildings and all the living beings that inhabit it.