Venice Biennale Previews Drew a Fleet of Megayachts and Their Owners
The most conspicuous arrivals at this year’s Venice Biennale previews were not always the people carrying press badges. Along the water near the Giardini, megayachts clustered in plain view, turning the city’s canals into a temporary map of wealth, collecting, and private patronage. Using prior reporting and public records, several of the vessels can be linked to figures with long-standing ties to contemporary art.
One of the most visible was Private GG, a 170-foot yacht built in 2022 by the Italian shipyard CRN and designed by Omega Architects, with interiors by Massari Design. The vessel belongs to Giancarlo Giammetti, the cofounder of Valentino and the longtime business and romantic partner of Valentino Garavani. Giammetti was in Venice for the Biennale opening and posted photographs that included Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault, the Kering chairman and one of the best-known collectors in the field.
Giammetti and Garavani have both been active in the art market. Garavani sold Jean-Michel Basquiat’s “El Gran Espectaculo (The Nile)” in 2023 at Christie’s for just over $67 million, well above its $45 million estimate. Giammetti sold Basquiat’s “In This Case” in 2021 for $93 million, nearly twice its estimate. The pair also opened PM23 in Rome last year, an exhibition space named for its address at 23 Piazza Mignanelli and run by the Fondazione Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti.
Another yacht seen in Venice was Kathryn, a 190-foot megayacht built in 2023 by Codecasa and designed by M2 Atelier. It is reportedly owned by Orlando Bravo, the private equity billionaire behind Thoma Bravo. Bravo, who was born in Puerto Rico, has made major philanthropic gifts on the island, including $100 million for economic development through his family foundation and $10 million for Hurricane Maria relief in 2021. He is also a collector who has appeared on ’s Top 200 Collectors list.
A third vessel, Maraya, is reportedly owned by Mohammed Abu-Ghazaleh, who acquired Fresh Del Monte in 1996 for a reported $120 million. Abu-Ghazaleh and his wife, Mahera, helped fund the MMAG Foundation in Jordan.
At the Biennale, the yachts were more than a backdrop. They underscored how closely the contemporary art world remains intertwined with fashion, finance, and philanthropy — often before a visitor has even reached the first pavilion.
