Fondation Valmont, Palazzo de Vicini, VeniceMay 2025 As part of Twice Upon a Time at Fondation Valmont, Marcos Lutyens presented a series of performances in the Room of Dreams, a space conceived by Didier Guillon as an environment for introspection, imagination, and inner travel. Installed within Palazzo de Vicini, the Room of Dreams functioned not as a stage but as a threshold—an architectural and psychological container in which the performance unfolded.
The work centered on a hypnotic induction exploring the act of doubling: a guided splitting of the self that invited participants to encounter their inner counterpart, or double. Through voice, rhythm, and presence, the performance proposed a movement between states—waking and dreaming, conscious and latent—allowing the hidden aspects of the self to surface and be recognized.
During the performance, Lutyens shifted into an alter-ego presence, marked by ritualized gesture and sound. He carried and played a drum emblazoned with four quadrants, a symbolic structure referencing the unification of inner and outer worlds, individual and collective identity, and the social and environmental dimensions in which the self is embedded. The drum acted both as instrument and diagram: a resonant map for integration.

As with all of Marcos Lutyens’s projects, the work sought to create a space of transformation and individuation—one in which the seemingly impossible becomes attainable, and the concealed self is brought into awareness. The performance aligned with Fondation Valmont’s ongoing exploration of art as a catalyst for inner change and expanded perception
An additional performance exploring related themes was held in the Redentore Gardens, a site newly opened to the public after having remained inaccessible for over five centuries.
With thanks to Didier Guillon and Valentina Secco, Director, Fondation Valmont Performance curated by Chiara Ianeselli In collaboration with Galerie Alberta Pane Photos courtesy of Fondation Valmont