Venice has always been a city of layers, where the boundary between the physical world and the imagined one is as permeable as the tide against the palazzos. During the opening week of the city’s 61st Biennale, this spirit of immersion became the dominant currency. From Marina Abramovic’s evocative “12 Years of Ulay” at the Cukcarna Gallery to Jordan Roth’s performance channeling the 16th-century polymath Irene di Spilimbergo at the Palazzo dei Fiori, the city was less a destination and more a living gallery.
Into this atmospheric swell stepped Golden Goose, the Italian luxury brand known for its distressed sneakers and subversive approach to luxury. The brand unveiled “The Forest For The Trees,” an experiential installation conceived by the Los Angeles-based creative studio Playlab Inc. Hosted at Haus—Golden Goose’s cultural hub situated in the industrial port area of Maghera—the unveiling was marked by a dinner party that felt less like a corporate event and more like a surrealist gathering, blending high art with a touch of madcap whimsy.
For those familiar with the visual landscape of the last decade, Playlab Inc. Is a name that operates largely in the background of some of the most influential aesthetics in pop culture. The studio’s portfolio spans high-fashion outings for the late Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton, cinematic visuals for Post Malone and a current, ambitious reimagining of the Westminster Dog Show. In “The Forest For The Trees,” Playlab brought that same multidisciplinary rigor to Venice, transforming a gritty industrial space into a sanctuary of optimism.
A Sanctuary of Optimism in Maghera
The installation itself is an interactive odyssey. Visitors are guided through spaces that evoke a fairytale interpretation of flora and fauna, blurring the line between the natural world and the subconscious. The experience culminates in a participatory act: viewers paint their own tree and “plant” it into a toy-like forest, which is then digitally projected onto the surrounding walls, creating a collective, evolving ecosystem of imagination.
The freedom granted to the creatives was intentional. Silvio Campara, CEO of Golden Goose, noted that the brand provided no definitive direction to Playlab Inc., opting instead for a “carte blanche” approach to foster genuine creativity.
“The priority is to always deliver a message of freedom and creativity to everyone, and they understood that perfectly,” Campara said during a pre-dinner aperitivo. “And we thought it would be interesting to explore that with them because we had a mutual friend, Virgil Abloh; I am not sure many people know, but Virgil did one of our first collaborations back in 2013.”
This connection to Abloh—a pioneer in bridging the gap between streetwear and the fine art world—serves as the spiritual blueprint for the project. For Playlab’s Archie Lee Coates IV, Jeff Franklin, and Ana Cecilia Thompson Motta, the lack of constraints was a rare gift in an industry often driven by rigid brand guidelines.
Coates, who traveled from Los Angeles for the celebration, described the goal as creating a “Hollywood-like immersive backdrop” that could transport the guest to a non-existent storybook. “We’re living in a world that’s so cynical now, that you could almost see that [desire] as corny,” Coates admitted. “But for Jeff, Ana, and I, we’re optimistic people, and we wanted to choose optimism.”
The Sensory Table: Where Art Meets Appetite
The transition from the installation to the dinner was seamless, as guests walked through the fictional forest into a dining space enclosed by painted wooden trees and whimsical woodland animals. The decor didn’t just mimic nature; it integrated it. Long dining tables were draped in foliage, some of which served as the first course. Baskets of fresh asparagus and crispy wild leaves were scattered across the tables, encouraging guests to interact with their environment before the formal service began.
The menu reflected the forest theme through an avant-garde lens, focusing on earthy, aromatic profiles. The meal opened with a composition of wild herbs, smoked potatoes, and rosemary, followed by a daring mushroom and tobacco risotto enriched with almond milk and calamint. The choice of tobacco in the risotto added a smoky, pungent depth that mirrored the atmospheric, slightly mysterious vibe of the Maghera port setting.
| Project Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Commissioning Brand | Golden Goose |
| Creative Studio | Playlab Inc. (Los Angeles) |
| Location | Haus, Maghera (Venice) |
| Core Concept | Interactive Optimism / Digital Flora |
An Eclectic Convergence of Disciplines
The guest list was a testament to Golden Goose’s desire to intersect different cultural spheres. The crowd was a curated mix of contemporary artists, athletes, and architects, creating a dinner conversation that shifted fluidly between the technicalities of sculpture and the physics of skateboarding.
Notable attendees included:
- Artists: Lola Schnabel, Youssef Nabil, Charlotte Rose, and the emerging Sean Koons.
- Performers & Public Figures: Actor Arjun Kapoor and pianist Alberto Bof.
- Design & Architecture: Architect Tessa Sakhi and filmmaker Sinbad Guggenheim.
- Athletes: Olympic skateboarders Keegan Palmer and Cory Juneau.
The dialogue among guests often circled back to the nature of artistic evolution. Lola Schnabel spoke of her recent relocation from New York to Sicily to deepen her creative practice, while Youssef Nabil discussed the preparations for his upcoming major solo exhibition at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris. It was a convergence of minds that mirrored the installation itself: diverse, eclectic, and rooted in a shared pursuit of beauty.
As the evening wound down, the surrealism of the forest gave way to the timelessness of the Venetian night. Guests departed via water taxis, leaving the industrial quiet of Maghera behind for a moonlit journey back to the heart of the city.
The “Forest For The Trees” installation remains a centerpiece of Golden Goose’s commitment to transforming its “Haus” into a legitimate cultural destination. While the dinner party was a singular event, the installation continues to serve as a touchpoint for visitors exploring the intersection of fashion and immersive art during the Biennale season. Further updates on Golden Goose’s cultural programming at Haus are expected to be released through their official channels as the Biennale concludes.
Do you think luxury brands are becoming the new patrons of the arts? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
