It’s been two years since David Chipperfield Architects (DCA) carefully restored Venice’s Procuratie in Piazza San Marco, a 16th-century landmark featured in far too many photographs to count. Denise Scott Brown’s pigeons come to mind. Ahead of the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale, San Marco Art Centre (SMAC)—a new institution at the intersection of visual arts, architecture, fashion, technology, and film—has moved into the old decorated shed’s second floor. SMAC’s 10,700-square-foot location in the Procuratie has sixteen galleries within the building originally attributed to Mauro Codussi, Bartolomeo Bon, and Jacopo Sansovino, later renovated by DCA. Today, Procuratie is owned by Generali Real Estate, which hired David Chipperfield Architects to renovate Procuratie and now leases space to SMAC. “SMAC fills a gap in Venice’s rich cultural landscape. We focus on content that sheds light on the unexpected, that challenges conventions and poses rigorous questions,” SMAC cofounders Anna Bursaux, David Gramazio, and David Hrankovic said in a statement. Renaissance-era beams were left exposed. (Adriano Mura/Courtesy Generali Real Estate) Sixteen galleries flank off a 260-foot corridor. (Andrea Artoni/Courtesy Generali Real Estate) “We are a spontaneous and experimental organisation, testing traditional models of arts institutions and exhibition making,” SMAC’s cofounders added. “We welcome collaboration, providing institutions, artists, and creative practitioners with a platform in Venice. We believe that the arts open new possibilities for human co-existence and allow for cities and communities to thrive.” SMAC’s sixteen galleries are arranged along a 260-feet corridor, whose details were revived by DCA, albeit instilled with a contemporary vision. The walls are clad in light grey Venetian marmorino made of crushed marble. The floors are white terrazzo. The enfilade’s original doors were preserved, while some Renaissance-era beams were left exposed. SMAC’s museum quality conditions and full climate and humidity control will help conserve this historic architecture. Modern circulation weaves the historic spaces. (Alessandra Chemollo/Courtesy The Human Safety Net) The venue has 15-foot ceiling heights and 58 windows in total which overlook Piazza San Marco. Visitors enter SMAC through a private courtyard, Corte Maruzzi, which guides visitors to a new, monumental staircase designed by Chipperfield. On the second floor, aside from the galleries, there are two event rooms with Napoleonic-era frescoes, where exhibition partners, curators, and the general public will coalesce. Coinciding with the Biennale, SMAC’s inaugural programming will feature two solo exhibitions one on Harry Seidler, an Australian modern architect; and another on Jung Youngsun, a Korean landscape designer. On May 8, San Marco Art Centre and The World Around will host a symposium about the future of contemporary architecture.