The San Clemente Palace Kempinski first came on my radar when we visited to see a sculpture exhibition on the grounds of the hotel’s private island during the 2017 Venice Biennale. Curated by Gisela Winkelhofer, the exhibition featured works by six contemporary artists: Sylvie Fleury, Jeppe Hein, Lori Hersberger, Gregor Hildebrandt, Brigitte Kowanz and Julian Opie. Julian Opie’s galloping horse on a screen beside the canal greeted visitors as they arrived by water taxi and was one of the highlights of the 2017 art Biennale. Two years later we returned to the peaceful island during the Biennale Arte 2019 to see a new solo exhibition by Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos (on until 1 November 2019). This artist represented Portugal at the 2013 Venice biennale with a small ferry that featured hand-painted tiles showing historic Lisbon scenes so we were very curious to see what she would do on San Clemente island. San Clemente Island is easy to get to. It’s 10 minutes across the grand canal and the hotel provides a free watertaxi service from near St Mark’s square.
Joana Vasconcelos’s Venice exhibition, curated by Nina Moaddel, features sculptural works in the San Clemente Palace Kempinski gardens and in the San Clemente church. The exhibition’s title, “What are you hiding? May you find what you are looking for,” is a response to the 58th Venice Biennale’s title “May you live in interesting times.” Inside the 12th-century San Clemente church beside the hotel, Vasconcelos’s impressive work “Madragoa” is on show. This large-scale floor sculpture, inspired by the facades of Lisbon’s buildings, was first shown at MGM MACAU in 2015 as part of the exhibition “Valkyrie Octopus.” The work now on San Clemente Island has new elements specially created for this site. The beautifully tiled interior of the church is the ideal setting for Joana Vasconcelos’s large, colorful sculpture.
A giant Venetian carnival mask, “I’ll be Your Mirror #1″ is in the gardens. Viewers will see themselves no matter which way they look at the large sculpture. Also in the gardens is “Betty Boop PA,” Vasconcelos’ most iconic work. As part of the artist’s famous shoes series, the sculpture is made out of stainless steel saucepans, a comment on both the glamorous and mundane aspects of women’s lives.
The history of the property that’s now a five-star luxury hotel (a member of Leading Hotels of the World) is fascinating. San Clemente Island was first settled in 1131, when Venetian merchant Pietro Gattilesso funded the construction of a church and a hospice for pilgrims and soldiers destined for the Holy Land. The complex was run by Augustine canons for several centuries. In the 15th century, thanks to donations from wealthy Venetian families, the monastery was enlarged and the church was restored. Between the 15th and 16th centuries, San Clemente became known as the “gateway to Venice.” It became standard practice to take the Bucentaur (Bucintoro), the Doge’s ceremonial barge, to the island to meet distinguished visitors. From 1873-1992, the complex housed a hospital, closed in 1992.
Today the former monastery is managed by Kempinski Group, which reopened the hotel as San Clemente Palace Kempinski in March 2016. The luxury resort has 190 guestrooms and suites, three restaurants, three bars, an outdoor swimming pool, a spa, a tennis court and a golf pitching course, all set in gorgeous, expansive grounds.
The hotel features high ceilings, lavish furnishings and long corridors, contributing to a palatial feel. The hotel’s most expensive room is the San Clemente Suite featuring a separate bedroom, lounge and kitchen, all with tasteful contemporary design. Best of all, there are plenty of windows offering spectacular views across the lagoon.
The bar and restaurants are suitably elegant and there are outdoor terraces for dining and cocktails too. La Dolce is the more informal bar and restaurant while Acquarello is the gourmet, fine-dining restaurant under the helm of Chef Giorgio Schifferegger. During the 2019 art biennale, Chef Schifferegger will collaborate with several chefs of Michelin-starred restaurants. Matthias Schmidberger from Grand Hotel Des Bains Kempinski St. Moritz will be guest chef from 12 – 14 September 2019. With a private water taxi that ferries guests to Piazza San Marco every 30 minutes, the San Clemente Palace offers respite from the Venice tourist crowds. Stay overnight, go for lunch, dinner or a cocktail and see Joana Vasconcelos’s exhibition on until 1 November 2019.
