British-Algerian artist Lydia Ourahmane has created a new exhibition in Venice, opening alongside the Venice Biennale, that is deeply rooted in the city itself. Rather than shipping in materials, she built a pier for the island of Poveglia in collaboration with a local cooperative that saved the island from development, and she acquired a coin-operated light machine from the church of San Giovanni Crisostomo, which visitors must feed with a euro to illuminate the show. The exhibition is presented at the Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation.
Ourahmane's approach matters because it challenges the extractivist model of global art production, where artists often take from a place without giving back. By working with local craftspeople and community groups, and by repurposing a church donation mechanism that critiques museum access, her show becomes a living commentary on art's relationship to place, economy, and public participation. It exemplifies a growing trend of site-specific, socially engaged practice that prioritizes reciprocity over spectacle.