Venice. 2nd Document

There is an area between Venezia and Venice, between the reality and the logo, between the city and its brand. In this middle-earth conflicts rise frequently like fumes, clashes between truths and promises. In this space TRA, the imagination finds the humus needed to manifest itself. Here the two cities face off, mingle, declare war on a daily basis, they exchange the meaning of things and words. Only the stranger who lives in Venezia, remaining a stranger, can see this limbo; only by looking at Venezia in Venice and living the two dimensions with detachment can one understand The Possibility of an Island. Venice is a collection of documents because Venezia is the city of the future (as Le Corbusier affirmed), of the mind (according to Massimo Cacciari), it is the problem of Europe (as Manfredo Tafuri wrote). Venezia is there but is disappearing. It should be saved, but perhaps it is no longer a city. It stands forever, but it wanted only to be made of lace. It is made up entirely of pedestrian spaces, but in its waterways it is continually crossed by motor vehicles. It is the European city with the most cameras, but it is accessible without any control. Here there are no poor. It is green but few know it. It is cultured and bloated as an empire but when it produces an event the world has to come here as fast as a swarm. It is inhabited by ghosts, mice and pigeons but when you cross it you seem to have a nice carnival ride. It is serious but ambiguous: once a year it is profane, then everyone jumps into their boat, not to attack but to give thank for having been redeemed. The water reflects it and returns its summer moods. Misty and hot, rather than by the climate it is affected by the wind and the moon phases. Venezia is unique and replicable, fragile and unassailable in its primacy of urban absurdity. Only one thing Venice cannot replicate: the steps in the night or in the fog. Their sound is dictated by the weather, by sedimentation, by unique conditions: it is the nightmare that assails the sleep of those who decide to leave Venezia.