Perchè perchè la domenica mi lasci sempre sola per andare a vedere la partita dell’Unione. An exhibition in Venezia investigates the relationship between football fandom, graphic design and youth culture in the lagoon.

‘L’Unione vi vomita’ (‘The Unione [VeneziaMestre] vomits you up’). This was the motto printed on the scarf of Fedayn, one of the first and most historic ultras groups of the arancioneroverde fans, founded in 1987. It is just one of the many slogans, tags and symbols that for nearly 40 years have punctuated and defined the iconographic pantheon of VeneziaMestre supporters.

They have appropriated (and repurposed) the faces of rock stars and comic book characters – from Mick Jagger to Fred Flintstone –, clothing brands of the British casual culture and territorial symbols, reproducing them on stickers, patches, scarves and banners.

An exhibition entitled Perchè perchè la domenica mi lasci sempre sola per andare a vedere la partita dell’Unione at Ca' Buccari, a stone’s throw from the Pier Luigi Penzo football ground and open until Sunday 8 September (2-6pm) explores the relationship between football fans, subcultures, graphic design and psychogeographical practices within the context of Venezia. The project is curated by Ragazzi di Strada, an Italian youth culture archive and artistic practice, which held a month-long residency and research at Ca' Buccari, establishing a dialogue with fans, collectors and the local community.

‘Since 1987, with the union of Calcio Venezia and Mestre, the curva has stood as a point of convergence of the many facets of Venice, Mestre and Marghera. The ultras' ephemera, chants and graffiti have thus become tools of resistance and defence of an identity that is not only sporting, but also urban and social. In a context overwhelmed by mass tourism, football is in fact one of the last spontaneous forms of aggregation and fruition of the lagoon's urban fabric,' the curators explain.

At the centre of the study are the practices of iconographic détournement that, season after season, have contributed to delineating an ultras semantics exclusive to the Venetian context. Among the most significant examples on display is the Umbro logo, repurposed as ‘Ombre’ – the small glass of wine typical of Venezia drinking culture. But also the adoption of the angry Donald Duck, a staple of Paninaro fashion, adopted in 1988 by the ultras group United Kaos for their now highly collectible scarves. The theme of the re-appropriation of the territory and urban surfaces, carried out through the practice of graffiti art, is also touched upon.

The exhibition displays a balance of archival research (stickers, photographs, magazines, ephemera) and installations crafted for the occasion, which aim to reinterpret the outcomes of the research through unconventional flags, to be given back to the community to support their team. These include Solo per la maglia (Only for the Shirt), which revisits the vessel of St. Mark's by stitching together a series of match uniforms, and Make Venezia Hardcore Jamaica, a flag celebrating two of the most historic subcultural legacies of the curva sud: Caribbean music and hardcore punk.

In order to organise the material collected and the results of the research, a printed publication was also made, which can be consulted at the exhibition and will be soon made available for purchase. Anyone who would like to contribute to the research with photographs, memorabilia, stickers, scarves, stories or other material to be included in the publication can drop by the exhibition or contact Ragazzi di Strada either through social media or by email at [email protected]

Perchè perchè la domenica mi lasci sempre sola per andare a vedere la partita dell’Unione. Graphic design, subcultures and psychogeographical practices in Venetian football fandom is on show until Sunday, September 8 at Ca’ Buccari, Viale IV Novembre 65, Venezia, free entry, 2-6pm.