La belle au bois dormant - Giuliana Cunéaz

 

This is an interactive installation, a kind of “dream machine”, which offers the spectator an individual immersive experience. The work takes its name from The Sleeping Beauty, the famous fairytale by Charles Perrault, but in this case the spectator is asked to let themself be transported into a dreamlike universe without actually falling asleep. Lying on a bed constructed by the artist, which includes multi-material features that evoke the universe of technology, visitors find themselves looking at a vision created specifically for them, shown on a monitor set into the ceiling of the bed.

The visitor themself initiates the procedure by writing a phrase on a tablet computer. This phrase is then processed, in accordance with a set of inputs created by Cunéaz, by Artifical Intelligence, to give visual form to the visitor’s emotional state. Images and dreams are combined in a mechanism that enables the artist to develop her creativity in a groundbreaking way, in interaction with a machine. The result produced constantly changes and the onlooker finds themself viewing their own emotions, accompanied by different soundscapes, while lying comfortably on the bed. Instead of a single artwork, the observer is faced with a visual process that never yields the same results twice, centred on the personality of the individual user.

Var Digital Art contributed to the work’s realisation by creating all its digital dimension: Var Group’s know-how and expertise enabled the generation of animated videos on the basis of images developed and supplied by the artist herself assisted by Roberto Beragnoli, by means of AI systems.

The Alluring Empress, Theodora – Federico Solmi

Born from the meeting of the dynamic creativity of artist Federico Solmi and the digital expertise of Var Group, “The Alluring Empress Theodora” is an original holographic work in which the apparition of the iconic Byzantine Empress Theodora combines the traditions of a glorious historical and artistic past with the technological innovation of our time.

This holographic work shows the Empress Theodora dancing in space, participating in an evanescent ritual. The work transforms sculpture from a tangible to an ephemeral form. Symbolising both antique opulence and contemporary glamour, Theodora assumes the stances of an influencer, captivating the public in the form of a deceptive mirage.

The work was first presented to an international audience in the major exhibition Solmi. Ship of Fools , held in the splendid setting of Palazzo Donà dalle Rose from 17 April to 28 July 2024, to coincide with the 60^th Venice Art Biennale. The exhibition was organised in partnership with VDA by Var Group and in association with the prestigious Phillips Collection (Washington DC) and The Carl&Marilynn Thoma Foundation (Chicago - Santa Fe).

Map (Star) The World - Vincenzo Marsiglia

 Vincenzo Marsiglia is the first artist in the world to use Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 mixed reality device to create an interactive artwork. This technology has enabled him to extend his exploration of the spectator’s combined participation, experience and active use of the work and investigate the relationship between the real world and augmented reality.

Wearing the visor, the user can observe, explore and discover the space around them, going on a visionary journey in which reality is enhanced by Marsiglia’s art. As the spectator moves their arm and eyes, the star-covered texture typical of Marsiglia’s works proliferates in space, covering and mapping every shape, surface and material their gaze encounters: every change takes place during the action itself, accompanied by the soundtrack created by Ocrasunset.

To date, Marsiglia has used HoloLens to map a variety of locations, contexts and cities, including Milan, Parma, Rome and Tuscany, and to create stage sets. The spectator becomes an active, creative part of the work and experiences an individual, unique visual and sound journey that is unpredictable and exciting, ever-changing and variegated, revealing the visionary side of digital evolution.

Permanent and art - Andrea Arena

Art will be the common thread throughout the entire Convention. The Digital Deep Dive thematic sessions will be accompanied by a dream of sand and light, warm and enveloping like a hug thanks to the sand art creations by Andrea Arena. During the three thematic workshops, the artist will create an original artwork in real-time using sand and will conclude the performance with a session of “Permanent Sand Art: the drawing that remains”.