Move over vaporetti — there’s a new barge in town. Slated to gracing the banks of the Grand Canal in Venice over the past five days was a project by The Garage Center for Contemporary Culture, entitled “Commercial Break.” The exhibition is organized by Neville Wakefield, a contemporary art writer prolific curator globally. Powered by POST Magazine, “Commercial Break” considers itself to be a provocative architectural intervention in a city where no advertising is traditionally displayed. Unfortunately, as Artinfo reported, the city pulled permits a few days before and the videos were instead screened at the project’s Bauer Hotel party. The woman behind the “GCCC” is Dasha Zukhova, girlfriend of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich; it is the institution’s second project in Venice.  All videos are now viewable on the exhibition’s website.

Among videos featured is one by  Richard Phillips, starring Lindsey Lohan.

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Michael Stipe and Jeffrey Deitch – all photos by Caroline Claisse for Art Observed

Jefferson Hack and hotelier Andre Balazs exclusively presented the first large scale screening of the 3-D video art installation Evolution (Megaplex), created by the artist and filmmaker Marco Brambilla at the Standard Hotel and Spa during the week of Art Basel Miami Beach.  Overlooking Biscayne Bay from hotel grounds, hundreds of notable guests had some drinks and watched with 3D glasses an impressively intricate montage of kinetic imagery.   Brambilla is known in part recently for his permanent video installation, Civilization at the Standard Hotel  in New York and also for his collaboration with Kanye West on his video for the single Power.

Guests view the Evolution projection at the Standard Hotel and Spa

Jay Jopling

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