This is the 3rd floating cities project by New York printmaker and installation artist Swoon. In ’08, The Miss Rockaway Armada went up the Hudson River and in ‘06/’07 The Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea went down the Mississippi River. In this chapter, the fleet of three handcrafted vessels will sail the Adriatic Sea from the Litoral region of Slovenia to Venice, Italy starting in May. You can check out the map. As with all previous years, the boats are built from salvaged materials. This year the three boats include a modified Mercedes car motors with long-tail propellers. As the crew navigates their course, they’ll be collecting and installing things they find along the way, which will be on display on the boats when they arrive. Once in Venice, the boats and crew (a diverse list of artists from the United States) will offer intimate performances that incorporate music, shadow puppetry, and story. The boats will be docked for two weeks: June 1-14. If all this sounds expense it probably is, which is why Swoon is selling a limited edition benefit print to help fund the cause. You can pick it up exclusively through the Serenissima website. Fuck those Somalia Pirates, I want to hit the seas with Swoon and her crew of craftsman. This is my kinda escape and freedom.

The main photo above (by amazing photographer Tod Seelie) is of the partially completed Alice boat sitting quietly on the Slovenian coast. The photos below, also by Tod Seelie, are from previous excursions.