Joan Jonas Opens New Exhibition Space in Venice with Ocean-Inspired Works

Joan Jonas's exhibition 'Moving Off the Land II' at the Church of San Lorenzo in Venice preserves the scaffolding from ongoing restoration, emphasizing temporality and transition. The project, developed over three years with TBA21-Academy and Luma Foundation, explores humanity's relationship with the hydrosphere. The ocean is presented as both a natural and poetic entity. Drawings, poems, and words hang in the nave, evoking the submerged world. Five works titled 'My New Theater' offer visual immersion through multimedia, incorporating texts by Herman Melville and a Jamaican fisherman. A performer appears discreetly, bridging reality and mediation. Handcrafted Murano glass completes the exhibition's connection to the territory. The performance 'Moving off the Land II' on May 7, derived from the exhibition, is a variant of a work presented at Fort Mason Center for Art and Culture in San Francisco, combining readings, dance, live drawing, and projections to address endangered marine biodiversity.