On January 10th, the celebrations for the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death officially opened with the exhibition “The Axis of Time. Suzhou’s silk clothing fabrics", held at the Museum of Palazzo Mocenigo, in Venice.
The event was attended by the City Councillor for the Promotion of the Territory and University, Paola Mar, the City Councillor for Urban Planning, Massimiliano De Martin, the rector of Ca' Foscari University of Venice, Tiziana Lippiello, the director of the Museum of Palazzo Mocenigo, Chiara Squarcina, the former undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and honorary citizen of Suzhou, Laura Fincato, the president of Wavents srl, Massimo Andreoli, the cultural advisor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Italy, Zhang Lingxiao, and the Deputy Mayor of Suzhou, Zha Yingdong, who sent a video message.
“This exhibition allows us to strengthen ties with Suzhou and China - stated City Councillor Mar - and it is all thanks to the figure of Marco Polo, a great traveller, diplomat and trader, but also a man who knew how to intercept and know in depth a culture different from ours. Yet he is a modern personality, an example for all Venetians and not only them: we also owe what we are today to Marco Polo, to his travels, to his experiences."
The exhibition, which will remain open until February 29th, is part of a larger project that recalls and renews the historical bond between the two water cities: Venice and Suzhou, officially twinned in 1980 and located along the Silk Road. Both cities have a strong connection with the figure of Marco Polo who, during his long journey to the East as Kublai Khan’s appointee, was amazed by Suzhou and its silks. And silk is precisely the main character of this exhibition: about twenty dresses are exposed, comprising original creations, fabrics and faithful replicas of ancient clothes coming from the Suzhou Silk Museum, a centre for research, conservation and protection of the millenary technique of weaving that made silk from the Jiangnan region famous. Creations such as Song dynasty brocade, lampas, Kesi, silk tapestries, or the typical Suzhou embroidery known as velvet pattern, on display here with precious specimens, and are still examples of China's intangible cultural heritage today.
“They are creations that today, like back to the Venetian traveller times, arouse amazement and wonder due to their refinement and preciousness - explained director Squarcina - Not only an aesthetic and executive value but also a testimony of cultural exchange, with a view to collaboration which, today like yesterday, translates into inclusion, dissemination and dialogue between institutions. A joint work between all the members of the celebrations committee, which underlines the inestimable value of this homage to the figure of Marco Polo".
The dialogue with the spaces of the Museum, the Study Center for the History of Textiles, Costume and Perfume, which hosts the textile and ancient clothing collections of the Civic Museums, is also an opportunity to compare the style from an aesthetic and manufacturing point of view of clothing during the Serenissima Republic with that of the main ruling dynasties in the ancient Chinese empire. The exhibition is curated not only by Squarcina, Andreoli and Fincato, but also by the director of the Suzhou Silk Museum, Qian Zhaoyue, and by the consultant of the Suzhou Silk Museum, Liu Xu Dong. The project is promoted by the Municipality of Venice, the Foundation Musei Civici di Venezia, the Silk Museum of Suzhou, the Foreign Affairs Office of the Municipal People's Government of Suzhou, the Confucius Institute at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice, the Suzhou Municipal Office for Culture, the Radio, Television and Tourism, Radio and Television Media Group of Suzhou.
Fincato concluded “Over the years, no city has been able to maintain true and concrete relationships based on friendship and on respect for diversity with the city of Suzhou. This first event in the celebrations for the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death is no coincidence that it concerns silk, because it represents the great Chinese culture and the great mastery of its artisans. And the gift given to us by Suzhou, who lent us these clothes for the exhibition, is a sign of respect and desire to continue the friendships that have bound and honored us so far".
