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All Italy Venice Giant Hands of Venice’s Grand Canal
Giant Hands of Venice’s Grand Canal is permanently closed.

This entry remains in the Atlas as a record of its history, but it is no longer accessible to visitors.

Giant Hands of Venice’s Grand Canal

A new sculpture calls attention to climate change in the centuries-old city it threatens.

Venice, Italy

Added By
Lew Blank
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Straight on view of Support   Life Adventure W.A. / CC BY-SA 2.0
Straight on view of Support   Life Adventure W.A. / CC BY-SA 2.0
Hands emerging from water   Hawk Nilev / CC BY-SA 2.0
View down Venice Grand Canal   Life Adventure W.A. / CC BY-SA 2.0
May 8 2018, the Hands Come Down!   kaninekleenup / Atlas Obscura User
Support Venice   notchili / Atlas Obscura User
Support Venice   notchili / Atlas Obscura User
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About

As hordes of tourists ride gondolas through Venice’s world-famous Grand Canal, they will find themselves among entirely historic architecture—that is, until they reach Venice’s Ca’Sagredo Hotel. Here, a brand new art installation hugs the 14th century walls, addressing a modern problem faced by a centuries-old city.

According to some scientists, the Mediterranean is set to rise by five feet by the end of the century, meaning the Floating City could be almost entirely submerged by as early as 2100. 

The art installation, called "Support," created by artist Lorenzo Quinn, the son of actor Antony Quinn, is a pair of 5,000-pound white hands, finished with creases, fingernails, and other fine details. The human hands appear to prop up the historic hotel from falling into the water, symbolizing the threat that climate change has on history, but also the power that mankind has to stop it.

The sculptor intentionally based the shape of the hands after his children, to show the innocence, and power, of the next generation. Originally molded in a Barcelona studio, Support was carted by boat to Venice’s Grand Canal, where it will remain until November 26, 2017. 

Update May, 2018: Sadly, this sculpture has been removed.

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Hands Canals Sculptures Climate Change Environment Art Activism
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Added By

lewblank

Edited By

rbenn250, kaninekleenup, notchili

  • rbenn250
  • kaninekleenup
  • notchili

Published

May 22, 2017

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Sources
  • http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-4285386/Venice-disappear-100-years-sea-levels-rise.html
  • http://www.cntraveler.com/story/new-lorenzo-quinn-sculpture-in-venice-highlights-the-threat-of-climate-change
  • http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2017/05/support-hands-sculpture-venice/
  • http://www.designboom.com/art/lorenzo-quinns-support-sculpture-braces-ca-sagredo-hotel-venice-art-biennale/
  • http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-19/giant-hands-emerge-from-venice-canal-highlight-climate-change/8542652
  • https://www.lorenzoquinn.com/
Giant Hands of Venice’s Grand Canal
Ca'Sagredo Hotel
Venice
Italy
45.440555, 12.33437
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