Index:
- Introduction artisans
- Encounter with Papier Machè mask artisans
- Encounter with Ca’ Macana mask artisan
- Encounter with Casin Dei Nobili mask artisan
- Encounter with ARZANART marble paper studio
- Introduction cultural institutions
- Palazzo Grimani museum
- Fondazione Querini Stampalia museum
- Ca’ Rezzonico museum
- Palazzo Mocenigo museum
- Interviewing tourists on the street
- Australian family
- Sicilian couple
- Works cited
- Hong Kong visitor
- French visitor
- Mexican visitor
- Challenges
- Conclusion
Artisans
8/07/2021 – 22/07/2021
On the 9th of July I decided I had gathered enough material to start having conversations with artisans. My aim was to chat with different artisans (not necessarily those I thought could appear on my tour) and see what was their current situation after covid and if my project seemed appealing to them. Some were more supportive than others and this definitely helped me put some things into perspective.
My main conclusion from these encounters is that day tourists do not visit true artisans shops. These artisans’ client base is almost exclusively constituted of people that stay one or a few nights in Venice. Unfortunately, day tourists do not have the curiosity nor the drive to explore what is truly authentic.
These conversations confirmed my research that day tourists are the right group to target. Changing their behaviour by making them more aware of the true Venice and what it has to offer could have a positive impact on these artisans.
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Encounter with Papier Machè mask artisans:
8/07/2021
I approached the Papier Machè artisan shop, which is run by three artisans, to pitch my idea and see if they would be interested in being part of the route I have designed. Unfortunately, I realised that the rift between certain locals and day tourists is way deeper than I had imagined. Indeed, it was made clear that those were not the sort of tourists they wanted to have around.
It was emphasised that they did not want too many people inside the store that would just look around and potentially not buy anything. When I mentioned that I aimed to create a contact between locals and tourists to improve their relationship, I was told it is not an approach they seek out.
I personally believe that this mentality is flawed as they expressed no willingness to share their craft or exchange with people that are not 100% guaranteed to buy.
On the other hand, I hear them, I understand that day tourists are not always the most respectful and appreciative. The artisans must have had some bad experiences in the past. One of them mentioned that it would be a better idea to teach tourists how to be respectful when visiting and how to truly appreciate the craft.
While I was in the shop there was a man taking photographs for a new website called Behind Venice where they map out all the remaining artisans of Venice to help them gain more notoriety. He told me that there are already many initiatives that try to help Venice in some way, therefore, it would be better to work together with other people already established rather starting something completely new.
Behind-Venice. (2021) Discover and enjoy the authentic Venetian artisans and activities. Available at: https://www.behind-venice.com (Accessed: July 8 2021).
In many ways it resembles the map I had created with artisans, legends, cultural institutions, churches.
Conclusion:
Although I am aware that it is completely normal to have people disagreeing with your project, this interaction has made me think. It has underlined some things that I was already worrying about.
- Having day tourists wondering in more quiet areas may not please everyone (I sent out a survey to make sure it would be alright but it may not have reached enough people).
- Getting locals involved (artisans and cultural institutions) is complicated
- Although I am half Venetian I was not raised there, which amounts to being a foreigner. Thus, there can be a lack of trust.
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Encounter with Ca’ Macana mask artisan:
9/07/2021
This artisan was way more supportive and willing to listen than the previous ones. We began by discussing how badly they had been hit by Covid. They barely have enough customers to keep the business going. Then, I enquired which sort of tourists visit the store to see if day tourists (my target group) constitute a part of their customer base. He told me that usually day tourists do not come to this area as it is more museum-based and it is not the sort of entertainment they seek out.
Unlike the previous artisans, they do not mind day tourists and are interested in any initiative that could help attract customers especially in the wake of Covid.
Conclusion:
I was relieved to see that my project was not completely inadequate, which is the feeling I had talking to the Papier Maché artisans. Furthermore, the conversation reinforced how much some artisans are struggling because of the current global situation.
As day tourists rarely spend money in artisan shops, it could make a big difference if they started doing so.
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Encounter with Casin Dei Nobili mask artisan:
9/07/2021
I had a very similar conversation with this artisan. It was reiterated that these were hard times and that his customer base is not day tourists but people that come visit Venice for a few days.
He expressed that day tourists lack curiosity, that they come to Venice to take pictures for social media and do not actually care about exploring.
If they were to come in and ask question about his work he would be happy to share his craft with them even if they do not buy anything. This mentality contrasts with the Papier Machè artisans who were not interested in engaging in conversation with people who do not buy.
He was very interested in idea of gamifying the tour experience but underlined that it could only work if there is a reward to grasp day tourists’ interest. Ex: A free Spritz along the way.
Conclusion:
I am happy to see that there are some artisans that are genuinely interested in sharing their craft with anyone who is interested.
He was extremely supportive of my project, which was very encouraging.
Again, the idea that day tourists could have the power to help the struggling artisans if they were to be guided to them was further reinforced.
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Encounter with ARZANART marble paper studio:
22/07/2021
This artisan and her partner focus on traditional paper craft. I found this shop by accident while conducting an intervention (more about the interventions here). I proceeded to add it to my map and will make sure that its presence will be notified to tourists walking in the area.
The discussion I had with the artisan highly resembled those I have had in the past. Covid has hit them hard, especially since they are located in a more quiet area of the city. In normal times, their customer base would be constituted of people renting flats nearby, however, due to the current situation, that group has dramatically decreased. She has noticed an increase in day tourists but underlined, just as the other artisans did, that they do not have much curiosity. As soon as there are no shops left they turn back and retrace their steps.
She was very supportive of my project and asked me to keep her updated.
Cultural Institutions
04/08/2021-05/08/2021
I went to various cultural institutions to speak with the staff and understand what was their situation and whether my project could be beneficial to them.
Conclusion:
Although things seem to be picking up, in the wake of Covid museums face a decline in visitors, especially foreigners.
I was surprised to see that some day tourists do take the time to go to the museum, although they are mainly Italian.
Strategic advertisement could help popularise some of the lesser known museums and attract more people instead of always capitalising on the obvious places like the Doge’s palace.
I still believe that although most museums are doing sufficiently well, having some day tourists off the crowded streets could still be beneficial to cultural institutions and to the city. Moreover, they would get a more interesting experience of Venice.
Finally, we will see how these things develop once they have installed the green pass.
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Palazzo Grimani museum:
04/08/2021
The staff communicated that the museum is doing quite well, especially thanks to recent developments that were made, including the recovery of some lost art works. One year ago they were still considered as a minor museum but, although Covid was hard on them, the interest for this particular museum has been growing. This success can also be attributed to smart advertising.
They do have a portion of day tourists that come visit the palace but they are mainly Italians. The rest are people that stay a few nights in the city, some of which are foreigners.
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Fondazione Querini Stampalia museum:
04/08/2021
The staff from this museum conveyed that the number of visitors has dramatically decreased since covid. Even before the pandemic it was a relatively quiet museum. They mainly have visitors that stay a few days in the city and no day tourists.
The man that very kindly gave me this information was very happy to talk about the exhibition and I could tell that he does not get very often the opportunity to share his knowledge as visitors are more scarce. Indeed, this idea is reinforced by the fact that many other members of staff were either asleep or reading a newspaper.
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Palazzo Franchetti museum:
05/08/2021
This museum’s staff have noticed that although there is a certain movement of people, there are considerably less visitors than before Covid.
As it is located in quite a popular area, they have both day tourists and tourists that lodge. The latter is mainly constituted of Italians and the former of foreigners.
They are waiting to see how the Greenpass (implemented on the 6th of August) will affect museum entries. This has be mentioned by almost all the people I have questioned.
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Ca’ Rezzonico museum:
05/08/2021
This museum has less people than usual and no longer have a full weak opening but only open a few days a week. The staff member believes it will take years before the cultural institution goes back to normal. He also thinks that the palace should be more publicised in order to attract more people (like the palazzo Grimani).
They do not get day tourists but rather people that who have a specific interest for this palace.
Palazzo Mocenigo museum:
05/08/2021
This museum has a very similar profile to Ca’ Rezzonico. They do not get day tourists and their visitors are mainly Italians who know this specific palace. I gather that things are going back to normal, although the staff were not allowed to disclose many details on the state of the museum.
Interviewing tourists on the street:
06/08/2021
I simply walked around Venice asking tourists a series of questions to get a better idea of how I could improve their tourist experience.
The Questions:
- Where are you from?
- How long is your stay in Venice?
- How are you finding Venice so far (positive and negative aspects)
- What is an authentic tourist experience fro you?
- How would you improve your Venice experience?
Results:
Australian family:
This family were not day tourists but were staying in Venice a couple of days. They were really enjoying their time in Venice although the temperature was a little too hot to their liking. They felt there were not too many tourists around, which they appreciated.
For them, an authentic tourist experience is one that does not include other tourists but them.
A way to improve their experience of the city would be to have better signage as they were struggling to know where the main landmarks were located. One suggested to have some nice arrow stones on the floor pointing the way.
Sicilian couple:
This couple were day tourists. They were finding the city beautiful and similarly to the Australian family, found that the number of tourists was appropriate.
For them, an authentic tourist experience is being able to taste typical food and, again, to experience the location without many other tourists around.
They said that their experience of Venice would improved by wearing more comfortable shoes and by better planning their trip, as they felt they were missing out on some things and were unsure what to do.
Hong Kong visitor:
What he really enjoyed about the city is that no matter which streets you take there is always something interesting to see. There are very few wrong turns to be made. A negative aspect of Venice is that for every unique shop you find there are 5 times more shops that all sell the same low quality items.
For him, an authentic tourist experience is something that allows him to engage with different aspects of the culture, such as meeting locals, festivities, food etc. Sight seeing is not enough.
He would improve his experience by spending more time in Venice so that he could experience what people would not consider tourist activities, but the true and mundane life of the city.
French visitor:
She was absolutely loving Venice finding it very picturesque and full of history. However, just like the Honk Kong visitor, she noticed that there were many shops selling very low quality items.
For her, an authentic tourist experience is visiting an area where the topography has not changed to accommodate tourism.
She would improve her experience by having a better knowledge of the more hidden and quiet areas of the city.
Mexican visitor:
This visitor was a day tourist. Just like all the other visitors, he thought Venice was wonderful. He appreciated its uniqueness and how easy it is to get to. He was a little more weary about what he called the “façade”, a fake display of authenticity, which is very difficult to get away from. This idea reminded me of a text about tourism sociology that I thought particularly enlightening.
“Authenticity is often staged by the hosts who furtively undermine the tourist’s endeavour. Caught in a staged “tourist space” from which there is no exit, modern mass tourists are denied access to the back regions of the host society where genuine authenticity can be found.” (Cohen : 1984)
He also find it quite difficult to find specific pieces of historical information about the city. When I gave him an overview of my project he told me about an app that seemed to explore a similar field. This app is called SmartGuide, where they offer planned tours with geolocated audio descriptions of landmarks. I immediately made a note to research it once I got home.
For him, an authentic tourist experience is having easy access to the history of the host location. His aim would be to learn as much as he possibly can without being treated as a tourist.
Him too, would improve his experience by staying longer in Venice and by doing more research before hand.
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Challenges:
The temperature was very hot, which I suspect made some people more unwilling to stop. Some visitors were quite rude.
When I heard about the SmartGuide app (mentioned in the section above), I immediately feared I was repeating an already existing concept, which made me really nervous. Once home I searched into it and found out that amongst their panel of options, Venice was one of them. Thankfully, they did not quite have the same approach:
- They built a linear tour where the tells you the way, which is the opposite of what I am doing, as I aim to provide a more free and explorative experience where visitors are free to wonder as they please.
- The app does not advise you to visit any artisans that one can buy from
- It does not show you any museum other than the doge’s palace
- I had a look at some of their historical informations and I spotted historical inaccuracies.
- Their main tour (the one in blue) is the most mainstream and touristy path of Venice, which I avoid at all cost and focus on the more quiet areas.
- They do not explore the Castello sestiere, which is the district I focus on.
- Mainly focus on audio, which I do not
- They are very recent and still beta testing
Conclusion:
There are a few ideas that kept coming up. Interestingly, tourists find that there are not too many people when locals feel quite overwhelmed about the amount of visitors.
I found that much of what the interviewees said reflected my research. For instance, the fact that Venice created a façade for tourists, which will not allow them to walk through, or that dramatically changing the topography of the city to fit tourism is a way to choke authenticity.
Furthermore, most agreed that to them an authentic tourist experience is one that does not involve many other tourists around, in other words, they do not want the mass. This shows that my project could be beneficial to them, as it is the Venice away from the mass that I want to showcase. In addition, many wished they had better planned their trip as they were left unsure as to what to visit. An app like the one I am designing could support visitors who do not have a plan as they would still find out more about the city with minimum effort.
Finally, it was lovely to see that all the interviewees really appreciating the city.
Works cited:
Cohen, E. (1984) ‘The Sociology of Tourism: Approaches, Issues, and Findings’, Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 10, pp. 373-392.