Lydia ourahmane's venice pier delves into family history and colonialism

In a sprawling, coin-operated Art installation in Venice, British-Algerian artist Lydia Ourahmane delves into her family's history and the city's colonial past.

A pier built for a quarantine island

Ourahmane's show, which opened on the Giudecca island, features a pier built in homage to Poveglia, a former quarantine island in the lagoon. Locals formed a cooperative to acquire the island a decade ago, fearing it would become a luxury resort.

The artist, who divides her time between Barcelona, Algiers and Venice, is known for conceptual works that explore themes of history, colonialism and immigration.

One of her most striking pieces is inspired by her grandfather, a French colonial army sniper who extracted all his teeth without anesthesia to avoid frontline combat during World War II. The story was remarkable to her as a child, but its implications only dawned on her later.

Ourahmane's work often incorporates personal artifacts, like Ghislaine Maxwell's old curtains in a previous piece. For her Venice show, she repurposed an old coin machine from a local church.

By reabsorbing these elements into the city, Ourahmane seeks to recontextualize them and make them