From cocoa-covered creations, to spaceships and rotting fruit, here is our selection of top shows from the first preview day
The decision that the Israel pavilion will remain closed until a ceasefire and hostage release agreement are reached may have dominated the headlines on the first media preview day of the Venice Biennale, but the other pavilions in the Giardini opened as planned. Here is our pick.
German pavilion
Thresholds, Yael Bartana and Ersan Mondtag
The stench of bitumen and dust that fills your nostrils, the candid nudity of the performer, a heightening of senses through a soundtrack of strings and wind, all play a pivotal role in the central installation by Ersan Mondtag, loosely based on his grandfather who worked in an asbestos factory and died as a result.
The German pavilion is all spectacle, even before you enter the earthen monolith at its centre. From the building’s high windows stream rays of light dramatised by pumped-in mist and Yael Bartana’s spaceship hovers cinematically in its own Space Odyseean way. The feel of the pavilion is filmic, visceral, and the performances are incredibly moving at times.
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