We are going to Venice in October. Will the Biennale still be going on? Has anyone been there? Any highlights?

The web page says 12 June to 6 Nov.

This blog entry isn't on the biennale exclusively, but you may find it interesting anyway. There's a link there that links to another blog with newspaper reviews:

http://makeashorterlink.com/?N3D81228B

I've not seen it, but I'm planning to on Sept. 4. I've not done a great deal of research on it.

I went several years ago and really enjoyed it - but I was an art history major in college with a special interest in modern architecture and design. My advice...Take a few days to wander around (the setting is wonderful and shady) and walk into every building...be open minded as you'll see some really bizarre things! When I was there I saw a large porto-potty like structure covered in pink fur...you walked in side and it was a karoke both. They also have other exhibits in other areas of the city...which I enjoyed because it forced me off the beaten path.

I can't quite figure out how the Biennale is set up exactly. There's the Arsenale. And then there's the exihibiton area with the various national pavillions. I forget what this is called.

Then I gather that some countries rent their own exhibition space.

Was there a list that you picked up when you got there?

I only have a few hours. I guess I'll have to make do.

You can go to the Biennale's website for more information:

www.labiennale.org

I'm looking forward to seeing it myself in a few weeks.

I've looked there, but I didn't find it the most useful of websites. Perhaps I didn't look at it closely enough.

The list of reviews I found, though, are quite useful. At least I found them so. I applaud that blogger who spent his/her time gathering articles from several international pubs. It'll give you a sense as to the highlights to look for.

I'm still confused about the venues, but I guess I'll find out when I get there.

Why do you need to wait until you get there? The website gives that information. There are two main venues: the Arsenale, and the Giardini nella Biennale, plus there are 10 international exhibitions set up in various sites around the city.

Where are the ten special sites? I've pointed out the Arsenale and the Giardini (granted, I didn't id this site by name -- I just mentioned the national pavillions).

If there's a list of the ten special sites and the exhibitions each is hosting, please let me know what the link is.

Thanks.

I don't know that there is a specific listing of the 10 sites-just that they are in various venues interspersed throughout the city. You can, however, go to the Comune of Venezia's website to their "events" link-click any day you want, and it will show a full calendar of events for that day-which do include Biennale-related events as well.

nglish.comune.venezia.it/eventi/


There's also a whole host of collateral events connected to the Biennale as well - everything from poetry readings, to seminars, to visual art presentations, etc., that stretch from the Lagoon islands of Murano, Burano, out to terra firma in Mestre and Marghera.

And then of course, on 31 Aug. through 10 Sept. there is the Venice Film Festival-which I will unfortunately miss, however, I am hoping that while I'm there, I can catch a pre-premiere showing of Lasse Hallstrom's "Casanova" -a movie about Venice's infamous native son-which will premiere at the Festival. The film festival takes place out on the Lido, of course.

There are signs over the city for the special exhibitions...it is probably easier to find out them about when you're actual there (I would see big signs/posters on some of the buildings). Also, I felt the Arsenal and the Garden were plenty...I had several full days just in those areas.

Thanks to you both. With my limited time, I think that I'll be content with the two main sites, but I'm planning to read the reviews more closely to see if there's something I must see. I'll take your advice, erin, and look for the special venues when I'm there, if there's something that'll take me outside of the main venues.

Re the film festival, I'll actually be there, and I've been checking the schedule repeatedly. But I don't think that the schedule has been posted.

Now Spygirl, where do you see the info regarding "Casanova" and how do you know that you can catch a pre-premiere showing of this?

Well, ok, the schedule hasn't been posted, so I couldn't have been checking for it repeatedly -- I meant I was checking the website repeatedly for the schedule....

Just in case a careful soul is reading this thread and is bothered by my hasty writing.

Actually, the info. re Casanova and the Chinese martial arts film that is opening the Festival are on the Biennale link.

Yes, I saw that.

But if you're not there during the film festival, how do you know if and when Casanova will be screened again?

Thus my puzzlement -- I thought that you had seen screening times for Casanova.

Maybe I should have taken what you wrote literally -- that you were "hoping" to catch it "pre-premiere."

I am just back a few weeks from Venice (was there in early July) and went to the Biennale at both the Arsenale and the Giardini sites. I found the Giardini location with the national pavilions a bit more interesting, especially the Italian Pavilion which included many artists not from Italy. While Venice was sort of crowded during my time there the Biennale locations were never so full. Actually, the Biennale exhibits were relatively uncrowded, to my mind. Regarding the alternate off site exhibits, I made no special plans to visit these locations but stumbled into a few of the spots and checked them out. A very powerful art exhibit which is NOT part of the Biennale but is in Venice until end of October 2005 is the Lucian Freud show at the Musei Civici Veneziani off of San Marco square. Highly recommended, and if you buy your Biennale tickets as part of a package with the Lucian Freud show there is a 3 Euro discount off the Biennale. A final tip: The German Pavilion was kind of interesting, with occasionally interactive security guards.

Listings of Art Biennale events:

http://artupdate.com/pdf/venice.pdf