To wind up here are a few final observations.
Tied up on the waterfront next to Arsenale are a line of hyper-expensive boats. First among them is Sea Force One. It is first because it has the distinction of having its own security fence erected around it complete with a small loveless cabin in which sits a security guard who takes all visitors through a metal detector. Sea Force One sports airport style security. It flies under a British Merchant Navy flag and looks like the sort of Ocean going vessel the royals might get about in and if not them then the billionaire tycoons or over rich celebrities who want to both see Venice in style, and be seen in Venice in style. Sea Force One is not unique however, the other ships moored up in front and behind it are similarly ostentatious and together they mark this stretch of waterfront out as ‘tax evaders mile’.
While there were some new countries contributing pavilions for the first time some other countries, such as Singapore, have dropped out citing the considerable expense of putting on a pavilion against the limited exposure the work receives due to the saturation of the Venice Biennale. They may well have a point.
Although the whole scene surrounding the art can be quite interesting to observe in its own right the places where the art was most visible were the pavilions situated outside of the Giandini and Arsenale. When visiting these the pace is necessarily slowed and the eye has a greater chance to look freshly at the work as it is not on quite so relentless a conveyor belt of art.
Finally I should mention the most untypical of the national efforts, the Lithuanian pavilion. They used a school building and centred the exhibition around a large sports hall and set of stair wells. It was not particularly showy, it was simply well thought through, had sufficient space so that the work was neither squashed together nor reduced to a single statement and they found a good way to create a connection between the work and building.
