The Venice Design Biennial is glad to present the VDB Residency programme. The city offers a one-of-a-kind experience, a program that provides the selected designer with the opportunity to spend one month in Venice and produce a work in collaboration with local makers.
The program aims at connecting international designers with outstanding artisans, thus developing a strong bond between cutting-edge design research and the traditional craftsmanship of Venice.
The winner of the second VDB Residency is Trent Jansen. His cabinet "Magistrato Al Sal Nero" has been exhibited in Venice as part of the "Auto-Exitic" Group Show in 2023.
About the 2023 VDB Residency
The second Residency was won by Australian designer Trent Jansen, who spent a month in Venice in contact with the protagonists of the city's creative and artistic scene. Among them, Trent began to develop his project with Vetralia Collectible, an emerging reality in the collectible design scene that employs Venetian craft skills in contemporary artistic research.
The outcome of the project revolves around the role of salt in the evolution of Venetian civilization and architecture and the final outcome of this experience was presented as part of the Main Exhibition last May.
In his Thirroul-based studio, Trent Jansen has developed a unique design style called Design Anthropology, an approach applied to anthropological and ethnographic methods to develop new products, designs, practices and forms of sociality.
Some of the works by Trent Jansen Studio. Courtsesy Trent Jansen
Vetralia Collectible, partner and editor of the second edition of the Residency, accepted Trent's design challenge, demonstrating how artistic interpretation, rich in inclusive and diverse cultural values, can be transformed into an object created through the incredible, though often hidden, skills of high Venetian craftsmanship.
On the right: Trent Jansen with the team of Vetralia Collectible.
Below: pictures from Trent's researches at Vetralia Collectible headquarter.
Curators Francesca Giubilei and Luca Berta with the designer.
Pictures by Veronika Motulko and Vetralia Collectible.
Progress pictures Ph. Yevgeniya Kulikova for Vetralia Collectible
Installation view Ph. Giacomo Gandola
Close-ups of the piece Ph. Veronika Motulko
Discover more about the project on the accounts of Trent Jansen, Vetralia Collectible and Venice Design Biennial!
Our partners for the 2023 edition
Main Partner: McArthurGlen Noventa di Piave Designer Outlet
Design is not primarily made of objects, but of choices that influence the way of living, of dwelling, of relating to others.
The Venice Design Biennial brings to Venice designers from all over the world, while at the same time providing a platform for Venetian designers and design practices.
McArthurGlen - Noventa di Piave Designer Outlet, located in the mainland of Venice, is the place to go for both locals and international travellers looking for a wide choice of fashion and household design.
This new partnership for the 2023 edition aims to emphasise the plurality of design, so that it is a device for seeking one's own uniqueness.
Manufacturer and editor: Vetralia, which will take care of the production of the design piece(s).
Active in the collectible design proposal, Vetralia is a meeting place for creatives, whose wish is to combine contemporary artistic forms with the multiple Venetian craftsmanship skills, expression of a culture of excellence that has its roots in the Renaissance workshop.
Vetralia's research consists in discovering, producing and promoting functional works of art capable of arousing a response in the end user both, in emotional and intellectual terms; pieces capable of expressing an innovative vision of the world, but made through processes originating from tradition.
About the first edition of VDB Residency
The first VDB Residency started in November 2020. Tadeas Podracky, the winner of the 2021 edition, exhibited the outcome of his collaboration with the Venetian studio Ongaro e Fuga Artistic Mirrors in the collective exhibition Design As Self-Portrait.
The first VDB Residency was supported by Milano Czech Centre.
Read more about the first edition at the dedicated page
Above: Tadeas Podracky in his studio, portrayed between his mirrors "Fading Reflection".
Ph. Tomas Brabec
Left: Fading Reflection exhibited at SPARC* as part of the group show Design As Self-Portrait, among the pieces of colleagues Touche-Touche That and Audrey Large. Ph. Federico Floriani