Participants in the Visual Assembly — high school students from an art school — were asked to imagine their city, Venice, as a vast open-air museum. But the students and their teachers immediately responded, “It would be better if it were something else!”
This Assembly became their answer to the question: What’s so bad about living in a museum?
And more importantly—how can we make it better?
The kids came up with so many incredible ideas! Here are my favorites: They proposed installing artist-designed trash bins throughout Venice (turns out the city barely has any!). Trash bins are actually an important part of organizing public space — and at the same time, they can be art objects, integrated into the city’s architecture. It makes perfect sense to invite artists from different countries — who wouldn’t want to design their own bin? I’m already thinking about mine! They also suggested placing mobile platforms in different areas of Venice for small concerts, poetry readings, and other cultural events. These platforms would be created with the help of academy students, guest artists, and architects. Mobile architecture — something that can be moved or removed if needed — seems to me much better than many traditional ways of organizing public space, whether it’s statues of men on horses, poles, or fences.