Something that makes the city of Venice, Italy so interesting is the crossroads of culture that happen on such a small island. From the local people who have lived there all their lives, to the tourists that come from all over the world, there is so much to be learned about the historical and modern day aspects of Venice. My experience abroad so far has consisted of studying a lot of historical artworks from the Renaissance, but recently our class took a trip to La Biennale di Venezia, an international art competition that is held every other year. Reflecting the crossroads of culture already in Venice, this competition brings together artists from all over the world that make social impacts by using art as their language.
A lot of the artwork I saw spoke to issues of identity, race, and culture. Each country around the world had their own pavilion, and a nominated artist’s work to represent them. Walking through each country’s pavilion was like walking through their culture, experiencing their beliefs, and understanding the universal social message of the art. One of my favorite works that I saw was a painting from the Kenyan artist Michael Armitage, who made a surrealist piece which ties in elements of the unrest political rallies taking place in his country.
Attending the Biennale has been one of my favorite parts about this trip so far, but I have loved everything about Venice and this experience. There’s something that feels very free about the city, which is probably influenced by the maze of streets and canals you are bound to get lost in, or the unchanged architecture of a city that hasn’t aged like the world outside of it has. I think that getting lost on more than one occasion has resulted in experiencing something new that I wouldn’t have otherwise, which is one of my favorite parts of living in Venice, and this mindset to be open and free is something I want to take home with me.