The Edition

Carpenters workshop gallery will present ‘DYSFUNCTIONAL’ on the occasion of the Venice art biennale this year, showcasing an international roster of artists and designers whose work creates a dialogue with one of the city’s most historical palaces. set in the ‘ca’d’oro’, which houses the Galleria Giorgio Franchetti, over 50 works by 25 artists and designers, including Virgil Abloh, Studio Drift, Campana Brothers, Mathieu Lehanneur and Rick Owens, will be presented alongside its permanent collection of Renaissance and baroque pieces.

Using the 589-year-old palace as a counterpart to the featured works, DYSFUNCTIONAL seeks to dissect the boundaries of art, architecture, and design. instead of focusing on the functionality of each piece, gallery co-founders julien lombrail and loic le gaillard want to place emphasis on the artistic expression with a series of site-specific works that complement their setting, whilsttesting concepts of form and function, and the historical and the modern.

Wanting to draw on the artistic heritage of the ca’d’oro, carpenters workshop gallery will present the collection of works throughout the space. each piece will speak to the backdrop of the city, the historical palazzo, and the gallery’s collection of Italian and Flemish design, featuring masterpieces such as Jan van Eyck’s crucifixion, van Dyck’s portrait of Marcello Durazzo, and sculptures by Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

Fragile Future III (2019) by studio drift will form a frame of light around Andrea Mantegna’s painting san Sebastian (1506), which is the heart of the museum’s collection and for which Franchetti purposely built a chapel decorated with marble. daring to go through the door (2019) by vincent dubourg will interact with the patera of the permanent collection, a bas- relief created to ward off bad spirits. working for the first time with clay, the artist randomly places paper-like layers of clay to form a door that obscures the view.

Vincenzo de Cotiis will present ode (2019), a 17- metre-long wall made of recycled fiberglass and silver plated brass by that works as an archaic architectural gesture whilst echoing the existing artworks it is surrounded by. meanwhile, in the monumental 15th-century courtyard, visitors can walk through a forest of light by Nacho Carbonell. the golden shimmering texture of his tree-like, organic sculptures reference the gilt and polychrome decorations which once adorned the palace’s walls. similarly, the patina of Ingrid donat’s Klimt cabinet (2017) refers to the palazzo’s former golden decorations, while its openwork facade was inspired by the patterns of Venetian stained-glass windows and Burano Lace

Inside, an art installation by the Verhoeven twins transforms the first-floor terrace with a mystical constellation of feather-light and supple impressions of bubbles, whose iridescent surfaces reflect and refract light around the room. also working to evoke Venice’s magical atmosphere, some of the exhibiting artists including Mathieu Lehanneur and Virgil Abloh have taken inspiration from the city’s canals. with ocean memories acqua alta (2019), Lehanneur pays homage to Venice by working from green marble and granite whose shades echo the waves of the nearby lagoon.

Inspired by the tide peaks which regularly affect Venetian life, Virgil Abloh’s acqua alta (2019) resembles a sinking installation inviting visitors to ponder the fate of Venice and of the planet, due to rising sea levels. then in a similar vein, raising awareness of plastic pollution, Stuart Haygarth’s tide color (2005) is made of plastic objects found on the British coastline.

Elsewhere, Maarten baas’ self-portrait real time (2019) shows the artist in his atelier indicating the time. created specifically for this exhibition in Leonardo da Vinci’s homeland, exactly 500 years after he passed away, this work references the Vitruvian man, while addressing the different aspects of passing time: getting older, moving forward and looking back. recalling Venice as the epicenter of looking-glass manufacture once upon a time, RANDOM INTERNATIONAL presents the largest-ever iteration of the audience (2008-2019), consisting of 128 interactive mirrors. their playful work explores the scrutiny of the mechanical gaze and the reciprocity of the viewer and machine.

Among others listed below, the exhibition will also bring together works from studio job, the Campana brothers, Australian designer Charles Trevelyan’s, French artist Morgane Tschiember and, modern maestro of collectible design, Wendell castle.

During the vernissage week, carpenters workshop gallery is hosting the design edit talks, inviting exhibiting artists to discuss design in its various guises (more details below). the talks mark the launch of the online magazine of the gallery, which bears the same name: the design edit, where the gallery will provide more information about its designers and upcoming exhibitions.

Wednesday, 8 may, 9.30am: ‘the art of authenticity’

Discussion on the evolving marriage between contemporary artists and luxury brands.
with the Verhoeven twins and Chabi Nouri (ceo of piaget), moderated by Rebecca Anne Proctor (editor in chief of harper’s bazaar art and harper’s bazaar interiors).

Wednesday, 8 may, 11 am: ‘form or function?’

When does collectable design become sculpture?
with Joep van Lieshout, Frederik Molenschot, Nacho Carbonell, Maarten Baas, and studio job. moderated by the journalist’s Caroline Roux and Emma Crichton-Miller.

Wednesday, 8 may, 12pm: ‘cutting-edge design and the new technologies’

how have new technologies transformed the practices and stimulated the imaginations of contemporary designers?
with studio drift, random international, Mathieu Lehanneur, Verhoeven twins, and Jakob Kristoffersen (senior manager, Bang & Olufsen). moderated by the journalist Caroline Roux and Emma Crichton-miller.

Wednesday, 8 may, 1:15pm: ‘classicism and innovation: the dialogue between the past and the present

How do these artists balance regard for tradition with a desire to speak to the present?
with Ingrid Donat, Vincent Dubourg, Vincenzo de Cotiis, Charles Trevelyan and Stuart Haygarth. moderated by the journalist Caroline Roux and Emma Crichton-miller.