An Entanglement of Art, Ecology, and Social Struggles: Porto Marghera as Dialectical Image

Firstly, looking at political ecology, the article develops a critique of the concept of sustainability. It then focuses on the (often overlooked) role of social struggles in the Northeast of Italy in relation to the transition from Fordism to the district economy. From this perspective, the refusal of work is shown not only as a behavior that contributes to the transformation of the production model, but as a phenomenon inextricably linked to the denunciation of the environmental and social unsustainability of factory work. Art has also played a significant role in highlighting the contradictions of the Veneto production model. Spanning the period from 1968 to the present day and narrowing the field of analysis to Venice (in particular Porto Marghera), the article examines a number of case studies located at the intersection between art, social conflict, and the environment. It is not simply a matter of evoking the Fordist past of cities with its accompanying struggles and intersections between aesthetics and politics. Rather, it emphasizes how the interest of contemporary artists and critics in workers' struggles against noxiousness responds to the need to discover an alternative genealogy for Venice's present. These past struggles are summoned as dialectical images to redeem a city reduced to a symbol of extractive policies (first linked to heavy industry, then to touristification), highlighting the presence and relevance of deep-rooted and resistant subjectivities.

This study was funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU, in the framework of the iNEST - Interconnected Nord-Est Innovation Ecosystem (PNRR M4C2I1.5, iNEST ECS00000043 – CUP H43C22000540006). The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union, nor can the European Union be held responsible for them. The article was developed as part of the activities carried out by Spoke 6, Research Topic RT 3, Task 3.1.