Venice Rising: Aqua Granda, Pandemic, Rebirth, edited by Kathleen Ann Gonzalez, presents the stories, some in English and some in Italian, of about 25 Venetians describing their experiences and emotions during the Aqua Granda (a once-in-a-century level high tide) of 2019, which did tremendous damage to treasured artworks, gardens, antiques and workshops, followed almost immediately by the 2020 Covid pandemic: “Financial loss and emotional devastation crushed the city residents and business owners.” But the subtitle of the book also includes “rebirth”, honoring the strength and resilience of the citizens of La Serenissima.
In one account, Catherine Kovesi, an art historian from Australia who has lived,
researched, and taught in the city of Venice over many years, wrote:
The day after the storm, I waded across the Piazza San Marco, bucket and mop in hand, to assist a friend whose maggazino (storehouse) had flooded for the first time in her memory. Suppressing adrenaline and a rising tide of grief, I struggled to get past tourists relentlessly posing with smiles on their faces as they delightedly memorialized their presence in a city destroyed. Their smiles seemed ghoulish to me. Could they not see the tragedy all around? I wanted to scream at them all to put down their smartphones and help, or perhaps better still, simply to
stand, look, and weep in solidarity
