The Venice Biennale guide nobody asked for

Venice… here we go again. Every two years the art world descends on the ancient, sinking Italian city, to party, gossip, and perhaps even see, the International Art Exhibition, aka the Venice Biennale.

We’ve asked around for insider tips on the best places to stay, the food to eat, things to buy, art to look at, and bars for when you’re sick of the art. You won’t find any gondolas, masks, leather goods, faux Murano glass or ‘best pavilion picks’ (we’ll leave that to the other art mags).

Look

This year, the Venice Biennale is curated by Adriano Pedrosa and themed “Foreigners Everywhere”, apt for a city built first on trade and later on tourism. It’s also a pun: there are foreigners everywhere around us, but we’re also foreigners everywhere we go.

For the first time in a while, we’re genuinely excited about the line up. It’s a strong year, particularly for collateral shows (shows external to, but officially associated with the Biennale). As for the pavilions, there is one clear standout: John Akomfrah for Britain (and not just because we’re British and we’ve dedicated our entire Venice Special print issue to him). If he doesn’t bag the Golden Lion we’ll tear our manes out.

But it’s the big solo shows we have our eyes on. In the sacred sanctuary of Chiesetta della Misericordia (a deconsecrated monastery), Yu Hong will test the extremes of humanity in ‘Another One Bites the Dust’. The Chinese artist’s intricate portraits, set against gold backgrounds and on arched canvases, capture the cycle of life, from the miracle of birth to the horrors of death.

Not enough hellish realism this year? Group exhibition ‘Beati Pacifici: The Disasters of War and the Hope for International Peace’ at Chiesa di San Samuele feels devastatingly pertinent. It features over 200 works from the Bruce Bailey collection – including Francisco Goya, Otto Dix, Marlene Dumas, Peter Doig, Jake and Dinos Chapman and Tyler Bright Hilton – each contributing to an “anti-heroic history of Western war art”.

Time to head to outer space, where Josèfa Ntjam has conceived spæc(i)es in the courtyard of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia. The installation revolves around plankton and the ocean, its important role on earth, its apparent links to space, and its place in myth, colonial conquests and the darker human histories of the seas. Think sonic sculptures made from bio-sourced resin and reishi mycelium which will shift over time in an optically dazzling display commissioned by Berlin-based art-tech foundation LAS. If you’re still mystified, you should try reading the press text. But trust us, the experience will be mind-blowing.

Also on our radar are Pierre Huyghe at the Pinault Collection – Punta Della Dogana, Guglielmo Castelli at Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, Martha Jungwirth at Palazzo Cini, Sarah Sze at Victoria Miro, Berlinde De Bruyckere at Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore, Peter Hujar at Santa Maria della Pietà and Christoph Büchel at Fondazione Prada.

When it comes to architecture, forget what you think you know about Venice. Yes, it’s a medieval masterpiece, but it’s also got some great modernist architecture by Carlo Scarpa. Check out his Olivetti Showroom in San Marco Square (free entry), the minimalist interior of the Fondazione Querini Stampalia and his Biennale ticket booth at the exit of the Giardini.

Eat

Venice runs on bàcari, small, independent wine bars that serve cicchetti (pronounced chi-keh-tee), small plates of food. If you want to annoy Venetians, call it tapas. Order a mix of dishes: salumi, hard boiled eggs and artichoke bottoms. And if you don’t eat seafood, why are you even here? Get the baccalà mantecato (creamy whipped cod), folpetti (boiled baby octopus), sarde in saor (fried sardines in onions, vinegar, raisins and pine nuts) and moeche (seasonal soft-shell crabs).

Some of the best bàcari can be found in the busy areas around the Rialto Fish Market. Many tour guides will tell you that Cassanova used to bring his dates to Cantino Do Mori on Calle Do Mori in San Polo (in case you fancy following in the footsteps of an 18th-century fuckboi). But our suggestion is All’Arco, which is just around the corner. But if that’s a little too popular, then head straight across the Grand Canal to the historic Enoteca al Volto in San Marco. Osteria Al Squero takes the title for the best cicchetti and aperol on the Rio de San Trovaso in Dorsoduro. While Basegò is the best place to drop into when you’re between the Arsenale and Giardini.

Still hungry? Try Osteria alle Testiere on the Calle del Mondo Novo, a five-minute walk from San Marco Square. This informal, upmarket bacaro is the exclusive option, with just 20 tables. Antica Locanda Montin is an old-school osterie run by cousins Luca and Giorgio in Dorsoduro. Book early for a coveted seat in the vine-covered garden. The La Trattoria dai Tosi is between the Giardini and Arsenale and a favourite spot of locals. Order the baccalà mantecato, frittura mista (fried seafood) and bigoli in salsa, (thick, wholewheat pasta in an onion and anchovy sauce). The Trattoria alla Madonna near the Ponte Rialto is traditional with a capital T. Almost every notable visitor to Venice has eaten here since it opened in the 1950s. Harder to get a table than Dorsia.

Grab a coffee and a pastry at Pasticceria Tonolo, it’s not far from the Scuola Grande di San Rocco and its Tintoretto collection. Colussi Il Fornaio in San Marco has been going since 1840 and is still serving the classics. If you’re looking for something cooler, pick up a gelato. Gelateria Il Pinguino is near to the Arsenale while Gelateria Da Tita is a little further out, on the Lido – but worth the trip.

Drink

The Plaster team will occasionally take the odd break to see some art, but mostly you can find us giro d’ombre-ing (that’s bar-hopping for those who non parlo italiano).

Starting in the city centre, there’s Bar Longhi, the opulent baroque joint of the Gritti Palace hotel, perfect for Campari Spritz. The terrace overlooks the Grand Canal and the prices match the decor. It’s a classic spot with good cicchetti. El Refolo is a new-ish wine bar, perfect for a pitstop between the Giardini and the Arsenale. Tired of the Gallerie dell’Accademia? Head over to the Cantine del Vino già Schiavi. If you need grounding in this godforsaken sinking city, the leather waistcoats, smoke-stained walls, Black Sabbath Tees and €3 Aperol of Profondo Rosso in Cannaregio might help. And if you like cheap beers and hate billionaires, head to the Rifondazione Comunista bar near the Giardini, formerly the political offices of a splinter group of the Italian Communist Party. If you’re looking for anything open late, you’re in the wrong place. Enoiteca Mascareta is one of the few places open after midnight, as such it attracts all sorts…

Shop

Mostly, Venice is submerged under a sea of tourist tat, but there are gems to be found. In terms of shops, there are the obvious tourist favourites, such as the photogenic spice shop Drogheria Màscari in San Polo and the zany bookshop Libreria Acqua Alta (which also promises resident cats) at Calle Longa Santa Maria Formosa, but you’re better off going to Bruno, a graphic design studio, exhibition space and indie magazine shop in Dorsoduro, or Libreria Bertoni in San Marco, which specialises in rare and second-hand art books. Nearby, the pigment shop Arcobaleno Pigmenti keeps the artistic spirit of old Venice alive to this day. And while much of the ‘Murano’ glass you see in shops is imported from China, Giberto Venezia sells the real deal (pay a visit to their new flagship on the Rialto Bridge).

Stay

Finding a place to stay is the easy bit (unless of course, you still need to find accommodation for opening week). This, after all, is a city where tourists outnumber residents by 300 to 1. We would recommend the Bauer Hotel, but it’s shut for refurbishment. At the top end of the scale is the Gritti Palace hotel, which occupies the former canal-side residence of the Venetian rulers. Rooms start at around £2,000 per night. If oyu enjoyed eating at Antica Locanda Montin, you can also stay there; the upstairs is a boutique hotel. The affordable Unahotels Ala Venezia is a 3.5 star hotel in San Marco. And the Hotel Arcadia is another boutique hotel in the Cannaregio district.

There’s no need to pay city-centre prices if you don’t mind taking a vaporetto (boat bus). Just to the east of Venice is the Lido, a long thin sandbank island that divides the lagoon from the sea. There’s a number of hotels along this island. It’s only 20 minutes by vaporetto to Venice. The Hotel Rigel, Hotel Villa Laguna, Hotel Villa Pannonia are all recommended.

TL;DR? Read the Plaster Google Maps Venice Guide → here ←