Fab Friday in Venice - Venini, Movie Star Lounge, Koolhaas and more!

Paolo Venini and his Furnace

(Venice, Italy) Friday kicked off with the press conference for the excellent exhibition Paolo Venini and His Furnace curated by Murano-glass-family-titan, Marino Barovier, over at Le Stanze del Vetro on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore.

Paolo Venini (1895-1959) gave up his career as a lawyer in Milan after becoming fascinated by the Venetian world of glassmaking. Through triumphs and tribulations with different partners, the entrepreneur succeeded in having the Venini name associated with some of the most beautiful glass the island of Murano has produced, collaborating with top artists, and even designing pieces himself. The exhibition focuses on the company's glass production that was shaped by specific choices made by Paolo Venini, and runs from September 11, 2016 to January 8, 2017. Free entrance.

I want one!

Next I was whisked to the Venice Movie Star Lounge out on the Lido, where I met the Immagicgroup, a pack of cool, clever marketers who genuinely enjoy what they do -- they captured my heart immediately when I saw that Jaguar, my favorite car, was one of their sponsors. The atmosphere in the garden of the Movie Star Lounge was gracious and serene, and I just fell in love with the whole package.

Chiara Pizzinato Atelier at the Venice Movie Star Lounge

No country on the planet does design and beauty better than Italy. The bella figura is in their DNA. A couple months ago, the Venice Movie Star Lounge was an abandoned greenhouse. During the Venice Film Festival, it transformed into a hidden nest where the stars could meet, relax, have conferences, do their hair and make-up, hold interviews -- all the things movie stars and the people around them need to do while promoting their films -- located just a few minutes, yet a world away from the madness of red carpet.

The Immagicgroup also have Movie Star Lounges at the Cannes and Berlin film festivals. Tastefully sprinkled throughout the lounge were a small handful of select Italian products. I thought, what better way to introduce the best of Italy to the world than by putting the goodies in the hands of film people!

Chiara Pizzinato Atelier, Malverdi Fiori & Eventi and My Wedding Bandoulière

When clever people give me gifts, I am happy to tell everybody how lovely they are, so thank you to Chiara Pizzinato for the elegant handmade purse created with Bevilacqua fabric, to Malverdi Fiori & Eventi for the bewitching fragrance, and to the ladies at My Wedding Bandoulière, a book bubbling with insider tips on how to get married Venetian Style (the copy I was given is in Italian which, shamefully, even 18 years of living here, I cannot read well enough to give my opinion) -- especially Elisabeth Rainer who coaxed me to the Movie Star Lounge in the first place.

Tomas Koolhaas at the Venice Film Festival

I segued over to the film festival (by Jaguar:-) for the official screening of REM, a biopic and act of love about the renowned architect, Rem Koolhaas, created by his son, Tomas Koolhaas. I have been fortunate enough to hear Rem Koolhaas speak on several occasions, and think he is an intense, enlightened being, who started life as a journalist and makes such statements as "I hate being an architect. I actually hate architects."

Fortunately for humanity, Rem Koolhaas continues to build distinctive structures all over the earth, and the film takes us on a journey to many of them. Tomas does a terrific job at giving us a peek into his father's world, capturing his dynamic personality, formidable strength, and also some vulnerabilities -- in fact, I doubt anyone but Tomas could have made the movie at all. He filmed, directed, produced, and edited it, and partially crowdfunded it with a Kickstarter campaign.

Rem Koolhaas

From the Guardian review by Oliver Wainwright entitled, Rem Review - Jet-setting Portrait of World's Most Talked-About Architect:

Pieced together from conversations on the road, Rem’s gravelly voiceover forms a continuous monologue. We are treated to his musings on everything from the nature of time to the joys of swimming, with each section introduced by a momentous title quote, like the sayings of the Buddha. The seductive camerawork shows Koolhaas in action in exotic locations, framed against near constant sunsets with a generous dose of lens flare and the warm glow of an Instagram filter. Most scenes are shot from behind, making the back of Rem’s head the star of the film – a product of necessity that turned into an fitting stylistic choice. “Rem doesn’t wait for you,” says Tomas Koolhaas. “I was literally running after him, then I realised it was an interesting viewpoint, a way of seeing what he’s seeing.”

The Magnificent Seven

Next up was a typical Hollywood blockbuster, the remake of The Magnificent Seven, which Variety termed, "The Adequate Seven." I quite agree.

I preferred Tomas Koolhaas' REM.

Ciao from Venezia,
Cat Bauer
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog