The Sound of Venice: Escapism
by Clara Läßle

Clara Läßle

Searching for melancholy in Venice

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Travelling drives me into an inner conflict. On the one hand, it creates a feeling of short-term liberation from the existence that one usually leads and directs your thoughts in other directions, on the other hand, I feel a form of fear of travelling, especially in groups, which I have often had to go on and rarely enjoyed. It is a fear of the loneliness that you feel even though you're not alone. Of not being able to fit in. This fear has often held me back, to take part in projects such as the "Sound of Venice" and also influenced me in my choice of subject from the outset. The tourist attractions and the hustle and bustle around them don't interest me - I usually avoid them because they don't tell the stories stories that I want to show.

 

My aim was to shoot a melancholic video portrait of the corners and squares and places in Venice that are not dressed up and moulded for tourists. For this kind of film, it is necessary to remain flexible, to drift and never expect too much. When I arrived in the city, I was overwhelmed by the strangeness of life in the water, the colours and buildings and was still very much convinced that I would be shooting on the main island. My shots in the first two days mainly show deserted streets, roads and bridges in brief moments where my satisfaction was limited. The mood that my film was supposed to create could not be captured.. I had made a sketch of the city and wanted to make it resemble it. But Venice in autumn is not necessarily the melancholy, deserted place I wanted to find. It is emptier than in summer, but still touristy, loud, colourful, distorted. It wasn't until the third day that I found what I was looking for.

 

The main island is always attractive in one way or another but Venice's beaches are not. In autumn and winter, they are closed, deserted places. places. They are empty, gloomy, resting and waiting to be overrun again, to be overrun again when it gets warmer. The lifeguards' towers are empty, shovels left behind in the sand. People have been here and they will come again. But for now, the beach rests for the winter. The pictures I took there, are the epitome of solitude. Beautiful solitude. After this experience, I only went to places that were deserted. I did a long hike through the sea to the lighthouse in Lido. With Willi and Lorenzo, I accidentally found an old factory site in Murano and explored the edge of the island, where all the rubbish washes up. An ugly picture, but exactly what I want to see and capture. My film must not and should not be a euphemism for the city of Venice. There is aestheticisation of what is shown, but in a way that later creates a mixture of unease and fascination in the viewer.

 

Exploring these places together was intense and gave me a lot. As was the exchange with other fellow students and the shared evenings and projects that we carried out during our stay. At the same time, by doing it alone, I made personal progress; enjoying the solitude and independence, as well as the meditative effect of travelling and the uncompromising asserting my own visions and style. My fear of travelling was alleviated, my vision widened and my head cleared from day to day.