My last day in Venice

Today, Friday, was my last day in Venice. I bid farewell to the city tomorrow morning and begin my long journey back home. Even though it was our last day, we kept the busy schedule going and enjoyed a day full of activities.

Beginning the day with an 8:30 a.m. lecture on post-modernism, we dove head-first into course material. After lecture, we were just able to catch the vaporetto to head over to the Guggenheim. Similar to Monday and Tuesday, we had the opportunity to directly visualize concepts from lecture in their real form. Post-modern art exhibits a new way of thinking. Showing an understanding of what it means to be human, post-modernism is often sublime and non-representational. The artist wants the viewer to feel the essence of their subject rather than simply look at it. Artists attempt to capture what is happening inside the mind and reject the value of the human body as form. This type of representation can often make the artwork difficult to understand. As Gombrich puts it, “the artist gives the beholder increasingly…more to do” (202). My favorite piece of artwork at the Guggenheim is Gino Severini’s Sea=Dancer. I love the color and texture of the painting and understand the relationship Severini depicts between the dancer and the sea.

               After we looked around the Guggenheim, we had a free afternoon until our final dinner together. So, many of us decided to travel to Murano, the glass-making island of Venice. During our afternoon there, we were lucky enough to see a glass-blowing demonstration. Seeing the glass at the different stages of construction was overwhelmingly impressive. The crafter would pull it out of the fire and it would be glowing a bright orange color. Moving his pole up and down in the air, the crafter made the glass sway side to side, like a tree blowing in the wind. But, a moment later he would be pulling the class to shape it and then pounding it. The glass looked like a bubble, a thick gel, and finally a glass object all in the span of one minute.

               Another element I found interesting was the incredibly high temperature the entire process was carried out at. Even after the glass object was finished, it would remain unbelievably hot for another couple hours. For instance, even though this horse that had just been made in the demonstration looked normal, it could still set a piece of paper on fire with its heat.

               When visiting Murano, I kept thinking about Venice as a heterotopia. The island and its function of glass-making reminded me of a class reading, “Of Other Spaces” by Foucault. In his paper, Foucault states “The mirror functions as a heterotopia”, giving the relationship between self and the natural world (24). The mirror makes the “place that I occupy at the moment when I look at myself in the glass at once absolutely real” but at the same time it is “absolutely unreal” because “in order to be perceived it has to pass through this virtual point” (24). The heterotopia of Murano gives the same sensation. I see and experience Murano in a completely real time and space, but while doing so I am able to see and understand the past function of Murano. The mirror, Murano, allows you to experience two different times at once.

               After Murano, we returned to San Marco where our entire class met for a special surprise. Our professor organized gondola rides for our last evening in Venice! Seeing the city from a new perspective, we were treated to a relaxing ride through the canals of Venice. We were able to get to various parts of the city very quickly, so it is easy to understand why this form of transportation was widely used in the past. Even though Venice is populated with canals, few people use the waterways to get from place to place. A few families still have boats, and have the main entry into their home off of the canals, but most people walk, because one must pay to dock their boat in the canals. It was nice to travel through Venice in a past form of transportation; it helped me understand the city as it used to be – a world power and trade hub- rather than a tourist location.

               Following a lovely dinner together, we decided to walk around the city for our final night in Venice. Ambling around near Rialto Bridge, we found a group of high schoolers from Venice. It was interesting to talk with them about the differences in schooling/education between the United States and Italy. All of them spoke English, so it was easy to communicate. I am glad I had the experience of talking with a local Venetian, outside of ordering food in a restaurant, even if I was not able to communicate with them in Italian.

               We ended our final night with a hurried trip to my favorite gelato place. Although it was my third time having gelato today, I enjoyed four scoops none the less. My week in Venice has been a memorable and insightful experience. I look forward to seeing everyone when I return to the United States! Ciao Venezia!