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VENICE, ITALY - 29 MAY 2013: Women with umbrellas protect themselves from a coins rain at the lower level of the Russian Pavillon, Giardini of the Biennale in Venice, Italy, on May 29th 20113.
Vadim Zakharov's Danae project has united the upper and lower storeys of the Pavillon in a single project for the first time in the building's long history, built in 1914. The theme of the installation turns around the ancient Greek myth of Danae. Vadim Zakharov states: "The installation has two points for viewing - from above and from below. Kneeling and looking down, we can grasp and feel that we are present at a unique process of materialization of the myth. Though the huge hole in the floow, we fall into another semantic and poetic space, into which golden coins fly from a pyramid ceiling. Below we see women with umbrellas, which protect them from being struck by the coins. The lower hall can only be visited by women. This is not about sexism but merely follows the logic of the anatomical construction of the myth. What is masculine can only fall inside from above, in the form of golden rain. The lower level of the Pavillon is "cave womb", keeping tranquility, knowledge, and memory intact.
The 55th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale takes place in Venice from June 1st to November 24th, 2013 at the Giardini and at the Arsenale as well as in various venues the city.
Gianni Cipriano for The New York TImes
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- ©2013 Gianni Cipriano / The New York Times
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- 20130527_NYT_Venice-Biennale

