The Caffè Paradiso, the historic café at the Giardini della Biennale, is not only a place of gathering and conviviality, but also a space that has accompanied the cultural life of Venice for more than a century.
This place is celebrated in the book by Massimiliano Gioni, Caffè Paradiso. La Biennale di Venezia raccontata dalle sue direttrici e dai suoi direttori (Johan & Levi, 2024). The volume brings together thirty years of the Biennale Arte through the stories of its directors: memories, anecdotes, and reflections that reveal the more human and surprising side of the world’s most renowned international art exhibition.
Each edition emerges as a universe of its own, shaped by the vision and the distinctive style of its curator: from the energy of Achille Bonito Oliva, to the political perspective of Okwui Enwezor, up to the Biennale of women artists directed by Cecilia Alemani.
The title of the volume is no coincidence: the Caffè Paradiso has long been – and still is – the informal backdrop for meetings, exchanges, and conversations between artists and curators, becoming part of the very history of the Biennale.
The book Caffè Paradiso is available for purchase at the Caffè Paradiso, Giardini della Biennale of Venice.
