2025

Calura

Calura is an interactive installation built around a fictional archive of found photographs from summers on Ischia in the 1980s. Heat is the main theme of the installation, and this is evoked both through the imagery and the presence and sound of the running fans. The fans were refurbished and hacked to become controllers for the archive; as they sweep across the wall, they change the projected images. At the same time, visitors to the installation can change the speeds of the two fans to switch between six audio tracks, including classic songs and iconic street sounds from hot Italian summer holidays.

We generated the archive in Replicate, recreating the aesthetic of 35mm film photos taken of street and beach scenes. Since the concept is designed around a story of found film, the collection proposes a voyeuristic window into a time and place, sharing perspectives from multiple unknown photographers. The result is a collection of photos that are stylistically different but that circle similar subjects and themes. The project draws inspiration from two 1980s photographers: David Hockney’s portrait collages that attempt to capture a more realistic depiction of his subjects by photographing them from many angles, and Martin Parr’s full flash street photography that captures the humor and vibrancy of ordinary life.

The installation was realized as part of the Designing Spatial Experiences course in SUPSI’s MA Interaction Design, led by Leonardo Angelucci in 2025. My collaborators were Julie Agustoni and Dajana Seefluth. The brief was to generate an archive of images on a specific theme and create new modes of interaction between the archive, people, and interfaces through hacking objects. It was exhibited as part of a group show at SACEBA in Moribo, Switzerland, in March 2025.

Role: Creative direction, archive generation, fabrication and refurbishment

Tech stack: Replicate, Photoshop, JavaScript, Supabase, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Projector, hacked fans