Arte Al Mare, 2014

Ospedale al Mare, Lido, Venice (Hospital of the sea) opened in 1868 and was once used mainly as a tuberculosis treatment center, offering alternative treatments such as heliotherapy and hydrotherapy, which went along perfectly with its beach-side location. For over seventy years, the Ospedale al Mare served the Lido community, standing out as an innovative healthcare center. Initially, the Hospice Marino Veneto, built to care for at least 200 children at a time, was part of this healthcare initiative. However, as the tourist culture of Lido Island grew and the hospital needed expansion, it became socially unacceptable and unsuitable to continue in its existing form​​. The hospital underwent expansion and in 1933 was rebuilt on Lido, eventually growing to accommodate up to 1500 patients and staff. Unfortunately, by the 1970s, the condition of the hospital began to deteriorate, leading to the closure of various wards.

In the summer of 2014, it became the site of an exhibition of Erasmus students, titled “Arte Al Mare” .

The opening of the exhibition was in June 2014, and I took one of the 26 rooms to create a site specific installation. The buildings nearby Theatre was reclaimed by a group of artists, who would hold musical events and art installations there. As an international student studying in Venice, I had also made a close community of friends and artists, together we visited the site, and took over the first flooe of the central building, because of it’s accessibility and it’s condition after years of laying empty. The space was nurtured and reclaimed, materials found on site were used by each artist within their chosen room.

Photographs taken by Marine and Djoul