It has been a year, and thinking back to the Tiepolo Ball now is like revisiting a dream, a fairy tale swirl of atmospheres, characters, costumes, lights, decorations and music.
On May 11, 2019, together with Maison Christian Dior, Venetian Heritage organized the Tiepolo Ball, conceived as a reenactment of the iconic "Ball of the Century" created by art collector Carlos de Beistegui in 1951 at Palazzo Labia in Venice. At that time, the costumes had been designed by Christian Dior together with Salvador Dalì. In 2019, Venetian Heritage and Dior decided to revive the event, once again at Palazzo Labia, in the Tiepolo-frescoed ballrooms.
Nexa was entrusted with the general production, so we mustered the best of our relations, partners, top vendors and organizational services to recreate, together with Dior and Venetian Heritage and their guests, the magic of the Ball of The Century.
The curtain opened with a dance performance, a veritable poem in motion, in the space outside Palazzo Labia, while our stewards—wearing black cloaks and "bauta" masks—welcomed the ball-goers, most who were wearing historical costumes when they landed at the water entrance of the palace.
At the entrance of the palace, decorated with antique furniture and furnishings, orange and lemon trees filled the air with exotic fragrances, and fairy tale characters strolled among the guests while a classical quartet played.
The gala dinner took place in the 18th-century rooms on the first noble floor of Palazzo Labia; 10 rooms, 17 beautifully laid out tables, tablecloths created with iconic Fortuny textiles, antiques on tables divided by theme and color, a blaze of flowers and fruit elegantly displayed among the custom-designed china and crystal flown in directly from Paris.
The opulent tablescapes were inspired by the Tiepolo frescoes and hinted at the different times and world locations depicted on the walls. The artistic arrangements read like an encyclopedist's illustration of tableware through the centuries. Each room featured a story and a place in time, from the Meissen Room to the Trianon Room, and the Murano Room. The table styling ranged from Egyptian to Moorish, Oriental, Renaissance, Baroque and Classicist, each giving a distinctive yet cohesive identity to the room. 15 different antique dealers were involved in providing the components for the lavish centerpieces.
After dinner, beauty was again center stage: the inner courtyard of the palazzo, surrounded by the sumptuous ground floor architecture, was canopied to create the illusion of a night sky, a fairy tale atmosphere of swathes of blue velvet spangled with lights like small bright stars, celestial figures and moon-catcher fishing for a silver globe from a tall ladder.
A magical night, the kind you see only once in a lifetime! Once again, kudos to Nexa for organizing the Tiepolo Ball, and an enormous pleasure to remember, hoping that our events and our beloved Venice will soon shine again!