Venus disappeared and reappeared: the story of an advertising campaign that started badly (and ended worse)

Chiara Ferragni had already taught us that there is no peace in the complicated world of successful influencers, but that this fate could also happen to Botticelli’s Venus no one could ever have imagined it. It took the advertising campaign of the Ministry of Tourism worth nine million (of which 138 thousand entrusted directly to Armando Testaonly two thousand euros less than the threshold which provides for the obligation to launch a public tender) to put the masterpiece preserved in the Uffizi in trouble after almost a thousand years. The “Open to Meraviglia” campaign, to tell the truth, hadn’t gotten off to a very good start: launched in the spring with all the honors by the minister Daniela Santanchè, it immediately aroused more than one perplexity, both on the costs and on the realization.

A masterpiece of ancient art transformed into a social 2.0 version didn’t seem like such a brilliant idea to many. But, beyond personal judgments, they had appeared in no time the holes of a project that shouldn’t have had any holes, given the strategic importance of tourism in our country. Websites written in broken English, stock images that had nothing to do with Italy (is it possible that the country of wine should use a video of a Slovenian cellar?, many wondered), photographs passed via whatsapp without even bothering to rename them, in case someone had downloaded them, and a Liberation Day tragically transformed into a Freedom Day.

Regardless of all this – as a good influencer does – the Venus 2.0 designed by Armando Testa had continued its social activity, traveling around Italy and collecting followers (not as many as hoped, in fact). At least until the holidays arrive. Yes, because in the literally hottest moment for Italian tourism, summer, Venus has evidently decided to go on holiday elsewhere, perhaps to Albania, as judging by the news many Italians did (including the Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who spent a few days there before going to Puglia). The doubt arises spontaneously, given that the Venere hired to promote the Bel Paese disappeared from social networks on 27 June, with a last post on Taormina. Then nothing more for two long months, until it reappeared online on August 30th. “HI! I know very well that you have missed me and I am pleased to know that you have been so worried about me », Venus wrote on her return. «Here’s the truth: I promised to bring the beauties of our Italy around the world and so I did. Airport after airport, city after city. Because when you really love something, you want to share it with the whole world.” evidently, in the airports where it was there was not enough connection, because any influencer worthy of the name would have at least made stories about her presence in airports around the world.

That’s it, now Venus has started posting again, but in the meantime we weren’t the only ones who missed and worried about her. Most of all she worried about the absence of Venus there Court of Auditors which, as he revealed Republichas decided to open a file to verify what happened in those two months of social absence of an advertising campaign paid for with public money.