Il racconto di una ricerca costruita attorno all’acqua. I progetti di Melissa McGill a Venezia
Melissa McGill, an interdisciplinary artist and water storyteller, is presenting her exhibition "AQUAE" at Galleria 10 & zero uno in Venice, running until June 20, 2026. The show traces her long-standing research into water, landscape, and community, featuring works such as the Eridanus series (maps of the Venice Lagoon and Po Delta altered with natural pigments), Lagoon Watercolor Studies painted with lagoon water, and a photograph of her 2019 participatory project Red Regatta, which involved over 250 Venetians. Concurrently, her community-based project Marea recently concluded in the Castello district, where residents of Corte Nova painted large sheets hung on traditional laundry lines to evoke lagoon waves and collective memory.
This article matters because it highlights how contemporary art can engage directly with environmental and social issues, particularly in a fragile city like Venice facing climate change and overtourism. McGill's practice exemplifies the growing trend of participatory public art that gives voice to local communities while addressing urgent ecological themes. Her recognition by the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center residency and the National Endowment for the Arts ArtWorks Grant further underscores the institutional validation of art that merges activism, site-specificity, and community collaboration.