Monumental artwork 'Noah's Ark' now on show at Marco Polo Airport
From this February, Koen Vanmechelen’s participation in last year’s Venice Biennale will have a successful sequel. At the Biennale, the Belgian artist had been invited to showcase two works of art at different locations, but connected to each other. One of those sculptures is now installed at Marco Polo Airport, where it will be on display for a year. The second sculpture remains in the Giardini. This will ensure both works have an unprecedented level of visibility for a global audience.
In 2024, the city of Venice invited Vanmechelen to participate with a partner project in the 60th Venice Biennale, the global pinnacle of contemporary art. The event’s central theme, Foreigners Everywhere, seamlessly aligned with the topics Vanmechelen himself consistently explores throughout his work. Vanmechelen presented the Biennale with a diptych: Noah’s Ark, a multimedia installation, at the Arsenale; and Looking for the Ark, a sculpture, in the Giardini.
Noah’s Ark
For Noah’s Ark, Vanmechelen was inspired by Venice’s iconic waterbus. In a contemporary re-interpretation, the artist transformed the vaporetto into a floating art gallery. Loaded with sculptures in glass and bronze, or consisting of taxidermy and 3D printing, the boat transports a microcosm of our world. Video footage shows an overcrowded vaporetto: scattered throughout the ship as passengers are important historical figures who have shaped our past and are shaping our future – from Frida Kahlo to Albert Einstein, and from Mahatma Gandhi to Mother Teresa.
Endangered species on the roof symbolize today’s environmental challenges. Alongside the Space Shuttle, they invite reflection on the dual nature of human progress. Following its initial showing in the Arsenale, this work is now being installed at Venice’s airport, where it will remain on display until February 2026 for the millions of travellers who will be passing through.
“The work invites reflection on identity, migration, and evolution – themes deeply rooted in my oeuvre”, Vanmechelen says. “The airport, a crossroads of encounters and departures, provides a meaningful context for the work. This creates an opportunity for it to stimulate the dialogue between art and society.”
Het kunstwerk nodigt uit tot reflectie over identiteit, migratie en evolutie - thema’s die diepgeworteld zijn in mijn oeuvre. De luchthaven, een kruispunt van ontmoetingen en vertrekkende gedachten, vormt een betekenisvolle context voor het kunstwerk. Het krijgt zo de kans tot een grotere dialoog tussen kunst en samenleving — Koen Vanmechelen
Looking for the Ark
Looking for the Ark, the second part of the diptych, keeps its place in the Giardini, one of Venice’s iconic locations. This sculpture, depicting a child in marble struggling with a bronze anchor on a glass chain, symbolizes the search for stability in an ever-changing world.
Venice is a unique city, Vanmechelen says: “This city is to culture what the Galapagos Archipelago is to nature. This work of art will continue to radiate hope, as part of the city’s collection.” “Vanmechelen’s works offer a lasting and powerful reflection on the environmental and social challenges of our time”, says Adriano Berengo, founder of Berengo Studio and partner in Vanmechelen’s project. “Through his art, Vanmechelen invites people around the world to think about the future, and about how we treat each other and the planet”, Berengo concludes.
General info
Noah's Ark
Feb 2025 - Feb 2026
Venice Airport Marco Polo
Looking for the Ark
2024 -
Giardini, Venice
Koen Vanmechelen
More information on lookingfortheark.com
Credits
Berengo Studio
Studio Koen Vanmechelen
Dit project is ontwikkeld in samenwerking met Stefano Zecchi, Beatrice Mosca, and Adriano Berengo.
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