Editor Whitney Robinson and Mr. Giorgio Armani Live the Venetian Dream at Festa del Redentore

Boats fill the waters. Fireworks coat the skies. Across the city, Venice’s locals flood their rooftops to see the display. This year, editor and entrepreneur Whitney Robinson was one amongst the crowds celebrating Festa del Redentore, the city's annual spectacle, as a special guest of Armani/Casa. The two-day experience included stops at nearby places of import—Palazzo Falier and Ducale—as well as studio visits and exquisite dinners. The design writer offered CULTURED an exclusive look inside the festive whirlwind.

Friday Afternoon: A Picturesque Arrival in Venice

The Danieli is a classic property, a fixture of La Serenissima since 1822 (the Palazzo was built in the 14th century). The lobby was even the inspiration for Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Everyone—including me—likes to take a picture on the steps. It simply never gets old.

The guests of honor and I boarded a boat strewn with Armani/Casa silk pillows that matched my silk shirt to our dinner destination, the very cool Venice Venice Hotel. A boat ride down the Grand Canal never ceases to amaze. Sometimes history is lost on the present, but Venice is a place that you viscerally feel has actually existed in the exact same way for the last thousand years. Where else is like that?

Got off the plane and headed straight to the hotel by boat. (Is there any other way to go?) The weather was typical July in Venice: sticky and hot. Thank God nothing keeps you cooler and looking more stylish than a Giorgio Armani printed silk shirt.

That Evening: Dinner and a View

Dinner at Venice Venice. Honestly, I love the Hamptons and our summers in Sag Harbor, but the food in Italy is just better. Marry me Venetian pea risotto.

Sunset in Venice. Like a movie set.

Reunited with Milanese friends like Tommaso Spinzi. He’s a super talented designer who loves collaborating with interesting brands and is always thinking about the future.

The Morning of the Festival: A Venetian Dream

Me with Servane Giol.

Morning view from my terrace at the Danieli. 1623 is the new 2023.

Giol’s writing desk has a view of the Grand Canal.

A silver tray filled with gorgeous Murano glassware from Giberto Arrivabene.

Riding the boat to the first of three private Venetian homes today, Armani fan in hand. (Did I mention it’s hot?)

Morning at Palazzo Falier, an important house dating to the 11th century that has remained in the same family for hundreds of years.

Morning at Palazzo Falier, an important house dating to the 11th century that has remained in the same family for hundreds of years. Its current proprietor, Servane Giol, is a talented writer whose book, Venice, documents the best palazzos and personalities in the city.

Midday Saturday: Refueling and Relaxing

Back in the boat, quenching my thirst with Acqua Armani.

In the studio of Fabrizio Plessi, one of the pioneers of Italian video art.

Lunch at Cipriani Dolci on Giudecca. Honestly between the Bellinis, the sandwiches, and the meringue cake I may never go home.

Saturday Evening: The Night of the Festival

Getting ready for Redentore with my friends Ameena Kirsche and Fabien Vallerian.

Me at Palazzo Ducale wearing Giorgio Armani.

The Armani/Casa Gala at Palazzo Ducale.

The incredible fireworks for the Redentore festival as seen from Palazzo Ducale.

With the man, the myth, the maestro Mr. Giorgio Armani.