The canals crossed by lilting gondolas, the bridge of sighs where the echo of the prisoners before dying still resounds, the Plaza de San Marcos which Napoleon himself called “the most elegant hall in Europe.” Walking through Venice, as you know, is like entering a painting by Veronese, Titian or Canaletto.
But this city of decadent beauty also maintains an idyll with contemporary art. A love that has its maximum expression in the Biennial, considered one of the most prestigious cultural institutions in the world and always committed to the dissemination of new artistic trends. This explosion of creativity that takes place every two years, and which is about to celebrate its 60th edition, makes Venice the nerve center of ideas.
In line with this International Festival that dates back to 1895, it is time to review some Venetian corners in which the avant-garde coexists freely with the historical patina. Art centers in which names such as Gino Severini, Rem Koolhaas or Jeff Koons, among many others, have contributed to offering another vision of the city.
A dialogue of the European avant-garde with the American movements. This is how the content of the Peggy Guggenheim Foundation is defined, housed in the impressive Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which stands on the Grand Canal. Here, in what was the house of this patron and collector (whose remains rest in the garden next to those of her dogs) the history of art of the second half of the 20th century is recounted.
From Magritte to Mondrian, from Malevich to Kandinsky, from Marc Chagall to Max Ernst, from Alexander Calder to Jackson Pollock. And also from Picasso to Dalí and Joan Miró. Cubists, futurists, dadaists, surrealists, modernists, abstractists... No one is missing in this museum opened to the public in 1951, which materializes the premise of its founder: "Buy a work of art a day."
Two beautiful palaces, Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana, make up the Pinault Foundation, with the personal collection of this billionaire French magnate, which includes no less than 2,500 works. Established artists such as Maurizio Cattelan, Urs Fischer and Rudolph Stingel rub shoulders with emerging creators in this innovative center, which also stands out for the architectural audacity of the Japanese Tadao Ando.
Also curious is the masterful fusion between fashion and art proposed by the Prada Foundation, in which this prestigious Italian brand treasures authentic masterpieces in another historic palace, Ca' Corner della Regina, restored by Rem Koolhaas. Here you can not only attend avant-garde exhibitions with works by sought-after artists such as Louise Bourgeois, Damien Hirst or Bruce Nauman, but also other cultural activities related to cinema, philosophy and architecture.
The Querini Stampalia Foundation, with its collection of decorative arts, and the Giorgio Cini Foundation, on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, which includes the Borges Labyrinth (inspired by a story by the Argentine writer) are other Venetian institutions in which to immerse yourself. of contemporary art.
But there is a curious place in which to see how tradition can also be avant-garde. It's called Barengo Studio and it's on the island of Murano. Its philosophy is to give a twist to artisan glass craftsmanship through a symbiosis with current artists. A new interpretation, in short, to this material that has a lot to contribute to contemporary art.
Also open to the public during the Biennale, Barengo is a glass studio, an art foundation and an exhibition hall that aims to put an end to the tourist conception of glass, unfairly reduced to the production of animal figurines. Artists such as Ai Weiwei, Tracey Emin, Thomas Schütte and Laure Prouvost demonstrate that creativity has no limits in Murano.
If there is a hotel capable of providing an authentic artistic experience, it is the elegant and sophisticated Nolinski Venezia, located in a privileged position, just a few steps from St. Mark's Square. And not only because it combines art nouveau with modernism and the liberty style, or because some of its suites are named after famous artists, but also (and especially) because everything in this accommodation refers to beauty.
With an interior design designed by Le Coadic
Art is also breathed in the kitchens of this hotel with an imminent novelty: the inauguration, this April 17, of the Palais Royal Venezia restaurant, commanded by the chef of Greek origin Philip Chronopoulos, who presents a menu whose approach combines French excellence with Italian passion.
