THE VENETIAN WATERCRAFT: GONDOLA EXHIBITION CENTRE / Stephanie Forbes
Venice, as a lived-in city, is dying. Its population peaked at 164,000 in 1931 but has now decreased to around 60,000. About 20 million tourists pour into Venice each year - 55,000 a day, so there are almost more tourists than locals in the city. Venice, including its traditional and cultural art forms, is in danger of becoming a ‘museum city’ for tourists.
As a remedy to this, the primary intention of ‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ is to celebrate the Venetian Gondola and make a statement in highlighting the current undervaluation of such a unique and culturally important entity. ‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ aims to provide the opportunity for both a local and global reassessment of this undervaluation.
‘The Venetian Watercraft: Gondola Exhibition Centre’ has two programmes running simultaneously. Firstly a gondola makers workshop located on the ground floor and secondly an exhibition space located above. The workshop level can be looked down on by the tourists from above providing a dual experience for the tourists who are able to learn from the exhibition pieces and information displayed, whilst being able to observe the real-life process of gondola making below.
Contact Details
stephie.forbes@virgin.net
