A river of digital gold is cascading down the windows of Venice’s Museo Correr, installed by Fabrizio Plessi to mark the opening of the city’s film festival.

The artist – who’s lived in Venice for 60 years – has taken over 15 first floor windows for his L’età dell’oro artwork, which is designed to reference the gilding found on the mosaics of St Mark’s basilica – which can be seen from the balcony of the museum.

‘Starting from this very obscure, dark moment, I think that gold is a light that can illuminate, and give us a way to satisfy our conscience,’ Plessi told Whitewall. He describes the piece as a ‘melting mosaic’.

The artwork is accompanied by a soundtrack of piano music and water noises, which especially bring the installation to life on rainy evenings – when the rippling gold reflects off the wet slabs of the square.

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