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Fig. 2.6
Shades of Absence: Public Voids
by Tamiko Thiel (2011). Augmented Reality, Piazza
San Marco, Venice. A memorial for artists whose works in public spaces have been censored
outside the Giardini they could create a new virtual pavilion for any nation of their
choice and place it in the Giardini (Fig.
2.7
). If they were inside the Giardini, they
took on the role of Biennale curator Bice Curiger defending her curatorial powers,
and could delete any of the upstart intruding pavilions (Figs.
2.8
and
2.9
).
In a classic twist, Sander's intervention also became an official part of the
Biennale: hearing of his intervention, dropstuff.nl invited him to show his Battling
Pavilions on their large screens in three locations around Venice (Veenhof
2011
,see
Fig.
2.7
).
Mark Skwarek's
Island of Hope
addressed the physical situation of the islands
of Venice, which since the founding of the city have been under perpetual threat of
sinking into the lagoon. Skwarek posited new forces of continental uplift bringing
hope of survival to Venice, the tectonic forces erupting out of the ground as fully
formed baroque gardens in the Giardini (Fig.
2.10
) and in Piazza San Marco
(Fig.
2.11
). Besides bringing additional landmass, all-powerful goddesses on the
islands incorporate objects of hope, and tweets with the hash tag #hope, into the
gardens in order to bring peoples' hopes and dreams to life (Skwarek
2011
).
John Craig Freeman's
Water wARs: Squatters Pavilion
also focuses on the rising
water levels in Venice, but with a dramatic difference. Water wARs is a virtual
squatter's camp for refugees of water wars, one camp directly inside the protecting
walls of the Giardini (Fig.
2.12
), and another “public” camp in Piazza San Marco
(Fig.
2.13
).
