Olympus – Alle origini del gioco 奧林帕斯－遊戲的起源 オリンポス ― ゲームの起源

The theme for the 2026 Venice Carnival is "Olympus – The Origins of the Game" (Olympus – Alle origini del gioco).

The theme celebrates Italy hosting the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics and Paralympics, serving as a cultural bridge between the lagoon city and the mountains.

It recalls the traditional public games, acrobatics, and sports competitions held during historical Venetian carnivals of past centuries.

It blends classical mythology, the harmony of body and mind, and the universal spirit of play, art, and friendly competition.

On the shadowed streets of Venice, two extraordinary figures appear as though they have wandered out of an ancient legend and into the revelry of Carnevale.

One is a commanding vision in brilliant scarlet, crowned by an enormous circular headdress decorated with golden rings. Beside him stands his mysterious companion, enveloped in layers of black, her face partially concealed beneath an intricate veil of delicate chains. Together they create a dramatic contrast—fire and darkness, power and mystery, spectacle and secrecy.

Photographed streetside during the 2026 Venice Carnevale, the portrait takes inspiration from the festival’s theme, “Olympus – Alle origini del gioco” (Olympus – The Origins of the Game). Rather than attempting to portray particular gods from Greek mythology, the photograph imagines something more ambiguous: two fantastical characters belonging to a lost mythology of their own.

Perhaps they are travellers from Olympus.

Perhaps one presides over celebration and competition while the other guards fate and destiny. Or perhaps they are simply two mysterious figures whose story has never been written.

That uncertainty is part of the magic.

The magnificent red headdress immediately dominates the composition, its circular forms providing an intriguing visual echo of games, cycles and eternity. Against it, the black costume seems almost to dissolve into the surrounding darkness. Only the textures of lace, embroidery, metal chains and the softly illuminated face emerge from the shadows.

Yet beneath all the theatricality remain two very human expressions. The direct gaze of one character contrasts beautifully with the lowered eyes of the other, creating a moment that feels unexpectedly quiet and intimate amid the spectacle of Carnevale.

There was no elaborate stage and no constructed fantasy landscape. The streets of Venice were the theatre. For a fleeting moment, costume, character and imagination transformed an ordinary corner of the city into somewhere beyond time.

This is the enduring fascination of the Venice Carnevale: strangers become kings, spirits, gods and creatures of imagination, while the boundary between history and fantasy quietly disappears.

“Origins of Olympus” captures one such encounter—a moment when two mysterious travellers emerged from the Venetian shadows, carrying with them the suggestion of an ancient story that was never told.

And perhaps, somewhere between Olympus and Venice, a new legend was born.

Mary Cosmica and Romeo De Benardin are veteran costumers at the Venice Carnevale. A chance encounter on the busy streets of Venice is pure magic.

The Venice Carnevale is not solely about masks. Local Italians and an increasing number of foreign costumers now prefer historical and non masked costumes or painted faces. During Carnevale, the whole Venice becomes a real life theatrical stage, and many of these non masked costumes carry deep perspectives...

The portraits were done on the busy streets of Venice during the Venice Carnevale, and as always, using only natural lighting.

This, is the real Venice Carnevale...