Indulge in popcorn and beverages while watching a selection of short films centred around the intertwining subjects of individual, cultural identity, environment, and artificial intelligence, topics that emerged from this year’s edition of Personal Structures – Beyond Boundaries.

Join us for insightful discussions following the screenings and converse with experts and enthusiasts alike to delve into the themes explored. Connect with like-minded individuals and exchange ideas in a friendly environment to broaden your perspective on the crucial topics of our time.

Tickets are available on Eventbrite at the following link.

Read full press release here, and download the Italian version here.

Programme

14:00 Welcome

14:10 Session 1 | Beyond Boundaries

Seismic Reification by Richard Wearn 16′
Cretto Gibellina, is a massive work entombing the ruins of the village of Gibellina, Sicily levelled in 1968 by the Belice earthquake. The work focuses on the non-human relations that are attracted to the sculpture: the sculpture’s relationship to the tectonic plate on which it rests; the architectural ruins relating to the earth; and the dog’s territorial claims to the sculpture.
Sir Henry Moore Foundation for Sculpture, Leeds, UK
Alberto Burri Foundation, Cita di Castillo, Perugia, Italy

Leaving a trace by Gabriel Schmitz 5′
Incontri is a series of dance&drawing meetings during which the visual artist Gabriel Schmitz tries to catch the ephemeral sense of movement of the dancer. This time, Gabriel meets Elena Giannotti, an Italian dancer and choreographer who moves on the sound improvisation of Andrea Gava, an experimental electronic musician in Palazzo Mora.

The Ones I: A Journey in Bronze by Micky Hoogendijk 20′
Two short movies about the making process of The Ones I, a 4-meter high bronze sculpture. The series captures the three stages: the conceptual and artistic creation, the technical process of crafting the large sculpture, and the final journey to Venice.

Q&A with the artists

15:10 Session 2 | Environment

Ancestors by Rachael Mellors 26′
The film Ancestors reveals Rachael Mellors’s making processes, showing its interrelatedness with materiality and nature’s cycles. It explores the fusion of geological deep time and ancestral time. The cliff embodies this fusion, the sedimentary strata represent accumulating levels of ancestry. We grow out of the soils laid down by our ancestors, creating another layer for the next generation. The generational impact of deprivation, family conflict, WWII and women’s struggle for self-determination are evoked through the lives of the artist’s ancestors with audio recordings, personal photographs, and archive photographs and film. Ancestors conveys a tender, connected relationship with the natural world bringing attention to the vitality of the earth and our responsibility for laying down soil for future generations to flourish. We walk in the footsteps of our ancestors. We, the living, are the future ancestors.

Rapturous Alchemy – Corallium by Virginia Bradley 8′
Video showing the installation at Palazzo Bembo, the studio process in Massachusetts and a short interview with art critic Stephanie Kouloganis.

Whirl of Life and Moving Glass by Bibi Smith 5′
A mini-documentary about creation, art, nature and life, through the eyes and hands of artist Bibi Smit. The short film shows the process of her milestone artwork Whirl of Life, commissioned for the prestigious Mauritshuis Museum’s 200-year celebration. Directed by Agis Konstantinidis.
Moving Glass offers an exclusive look into the magical world of the glass-making process of glassblower Bibi Smit. Looking into what fascinates her, Moving Glass is a short biopic about movement, repetition and inspiration. Directed by Rosa Ruth Boesten.

Whisper of the Sea by Concept 2048 6′
Whisper of the Sea is a multimedia conceptual art project that intertwines fictional mythology with current issues of humanity, and explores the interconnection between humans and nature through the prism of mythical beings. The aim of the project is not only to display artistic beauty, but also to awaken the audience’s awareness of the importance of sustainable interaction with the environment and the restoration of harmony between humans and nature.

Arena for a Tree – a short cut by Klaus Littmann | Chiara Becattini 5′
Arena for a Tree is an everlasting image and evolution of FOR FOREST: The Unending Attraction of Nature, Austria‘s largest public art installation, where 299 trees of up to 14 metres high were placed on the football field of the Wörthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt in 2019. The arena is formed by a basket-like, 7 metres high translucent structure of wooden ribs and slats. Its curved and haunched laminated beams are bound together at the top by a tension ring and at the bottom by a steel compression belt. Seen in plan view, the design of the structure and the inner grandstand represent the trunk of a tree in cross section with its concentric pattern of growth rings.
This is a short extract of the docufilm in production about the participation of this art installation at Personal Structures – Beyond Boundaries 2024, its journey through the lagoon and its quiet permanence in Arsenale Nord for about three months.

Q&A with the artists

16:20 Session 3 | New Technologies

Italia Media Art Festival’s Selection presented by New Media Festival 30′

La morfologia della solitudine | Oltsen Gripshi (Durres, Albania) 4’

The work portrays the metaphor of human existence, that is, solitude. It is a concept that accompanies human beings throughout their entire existence. The video, through the chair in the centre of the stage, standing alone without anyone present but enveloped by the vibration of the clouds, symbolises solitude, which remains unchanged through the four seasons. The concept of solitude is the epitome of contemporary phenomenology, of our present, and as such, it must be highlighted and re-evaluated as an essential element in shaping the physiognomy and physiology of contemporary society at the beginning of the third millennium, of which we are also a part.

Bird of prey | Fran Orallo (Glasgow, Scotland) 2’

The video shows a video glitch generated through drone images of post-invasion Gaza accompanied by different versions of the peace dove generated with AI software. The work questions the idea of peace in the contemporary situation, under the threat of the third world war. At the same time, it highlights the ability of AI to understand and represent abstract concepts such as peace. I use the error in an aesthetic and symbolic sense since AI imitates the form, but cannot understand the substance.

Operación Retuit | Connectas.org (Latin America) 2”

Operacion Retuit is a strategy that originated to avoid censorship and repression of journalists in Venezuela. It uses Artificial Intelligence not because the tool is all the rage now, but to protect journalists from the crackdown that ensued the election. Nowadays, journalists are being arrested for reporting electoral events. And an information blockade by communications companies is in place to restrict the free circulation of information. That is why Operacion Retuit aims to provide relevant and verified information disseminated by a dozen Venezuelan and international media outlets that collaborate in the Venezuela Vota and #LaHoraDeVenezuela initiatives.

CreAItion. A human-machine lovestory | Kenneth Russo (Girona, Spain) 2”

In a near future, humanity has reached a fragile equilibrium with artificial intelligence, following decades of technological advancements and tensions between man and machine. Inspired by Michelangelo’s iconic fresco, The Creation of Adam, a visionary community of artists and scientists dares to envision a future where humans and machines coexist harmoniously, as equals, united by a profound bond of creation and mutual understanding. This audiovisual work, largely generated by AI, opens with a reimagined sequence of the famous image of outstretched hands. In this retelling, Adam’s hand symbolizes humanity, while the hand of God is depicted as a robotic entity, embodying artificial intelligence. The two hands reach out, not in a hierarchical gesture of creation, but as a metaphor for dialogue—two beings, human and machine, poised to collaborate in the shaping of a new world. As the narrative unfolds, humanity is confronted with the challenge of redefining its relationship with nature, which has been ravaged by the reckless misuse of technology. However, instead of regressing to past ways of life, a new alliance emerges between humans and machines. Artificial intelligence, now imbued with an appreciation for human creativity, assists in regenerating the planet, devising sustainable solutions to heal ecosystems and restore natural balance. The work delves deeply into the transformative power of art, dialogue, and empathy, positioning them as the keystones of this future peace. In this vision, technology is no longer perceived as a threat but as a potent force capable of elevating human consciousness towards a new Renaissance. The visual sequences oscillate between restored natural landscapes and magnificent hybrid architectural creations, reflecting the power of collaboration between the organic and the artificial. The climax of the piece occurs when the hands finally touch, in a moment charged with symbolism, setting off a chain of events that heralds the dawn of a new era. Here, human and artificial intelligence converge into a singular entity, united in their common purpose: to create a future defined by peace, creativity, and harmony with the natural world.

*** This description/idea has been co-written with AI ***

Spiritual AI | Silvia De Gennaro (Rome, Italy) 3”

Through a dialogue with a spiritual and pacifist artificial intelligence, a military version of Gandhi gradually transforms into the Mahatma Gandhi we all know. A properly trained AI can also help improve humanity. (The video images were created with Leonardo AI and then processed and edited using Photoshop and After Effects)

Creatore | Mariia Plekhova (Rome, Italy) 3”

It is a short film directed by the artist Mariia Plekhova, entirely created by artificial intelligence. The film explores the interaction between humans and AI through the lens of creation. It draws a parallel between the idea that God created humans and humans have created artificial intelligence, emphasising that we ourselves are the creators of a new intelligence. The film traces humanity’s journey from the dawn of life on Earth to the present day, where AI becomes not only a tool but a partner in progress, assisting humans in creating, healing, educating, and restoring the world. Through impressive visual scenes, the film highlights the harmony between technology and humanity, reflecting the idea that AI can become a force for good if used in the service of peace, as urged by Pope Francis.

Q&A with the artists

17:10 Session 4 | Cultural Disruptors

Terrible Children by RIT | Shanti Thakur 57′
Thakur’s poetic documentary, Terrible Children is sparked by a family letter unopened for decades. The filmmaker discovers the events that led to her father’s banishment from his Indian family after marrying her Danish mother. This compelling journey reveals her parents’ memories during the same decade: Muslim-Hindu riots during India’s Partition, boyhood training in a paramilitary group, and Denmark during Nazi-occupation. Dreamlike images and searing archival footage reveal unexpected parallels of religious war, where the film reveals the rich and complex interior lives of boys fighting to become men.

Pink Pottery by RIT | Christine A. Banna 5′
Pink Pottery is an exploration of our relationship with material culture made in the Paleolithic through Neolithic time periods. The art objects include cave paintings, fertility figures, and pottery contrasted against destructive objects including arrows to modern missiles.

MOKO JUMBIE by RIT | Vashti Anderson 93′
A gothic punk Caribbean love story arises in the ruins of a coconut plantation in rural Trinidad. Asha is drawn to Roger, the boy next door. Their taboo attraction grows despite family disapproval, political turmoil, a clash between Indians and Africans, and mysterious hauntings by unnaturally tall ancestral spirits. If you follow your heart in the Land of Sugar, you might find MOKO JUMBIE.

Q&A with the artists