Terna’s ‘Driving Energy Award 2023’ Utilizes Innovative Technology for Immersive Art Experience

Terna’s ‘Driving Energy Award 2023’ Utilizes Innovative Technology for Immersive Art Experience

(IN BRIEF) Terna, the operator of the Italian National Transmission Grid, is utilizing its digital technology for the “Driving Energy Award 2023 – Contemporary Photography,” a competition aimed at promoting Italy’s energy culture and supporting artists in the sector. The competition, which encourages artists to explore the theme “In Praise of Balance,” will offer new ways for users to access and enjoy selected works through a Metaverse space, a PDE app, and a virtual tour starting from September 26. The Metaverse exhibition space is designed with fractal geometry inspired by the Award’s logo and energy’s dynamic nature. The virtual tour, app, and Metaverse space offer immersive experiences for visitors to engage with the works. The competition’s winner will be selected by a jury led by Lorenza Bravetta, and the finalist works will be published in the Driving Energy photography book.

(PRESS RELEASE) ROME, 12-Aug-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — The digital technology developed by Terna’s experts is being comprehensively put to use by the “Driving Energy Award 2023 – Contemporary Photography”, the competition organised by the operator of the Italian National Transmission Grid to promote Italy’s energy culture and the artists operating in the sector.

From 26 September, the Metaverse space, the PDE app (named after the Italian name of the award, “Premio Driving Energy”) and the virtual tour will increase the ways in which users can access and enjoy a range of selected works that will go on display to the public at a free exhibition until 15 October at Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome.

The virtual space of the exhibition in the Metaverse has been designed and created with a completely new design inspired by fractal geometry, geometric shapes that repeat themselves ad infinitum on an increasingly smaller scale, and constructed starting from the hexagonal shape of the Award’s logo. The design aims to reflect both the theme of the competition, “In Praise of Balance”, and the very nature of energy itself, a resource in continuous and dynamic evolution, like Terna’s mission, which guarantees the balance between energy produced and consumed 24 hours a day.

The exhibition in the Metaverse, which is steeped in symbolism and conceptual references, is strongly anchored in the artistic and cultural aims of the Award: to promote the works of the finalists and winners; to provide an additional, innovative and permanent point of access to the exhibition; and to offer users an original and meaningful experience to be experienced as a complementary enrichment to the physical visit at Palazzo delle Esposizioni. Thanks to the use of innovative technologies, the content, spaces and avatars have been personalised to create a truly unique and exclusive experience. Compared to last year’s edition, the upcoming exhibition in the Metaverse will introduce several new and exciting elements: in the new space, the link with the physical exhibition is ensured through a virtual visit with a highly emotive and scenic impact which has been custom-designed by 3D Artist to reinforce the theme of the 2023 Award.

Another new feature of this year’s Award is the inclusion of a photographic work created using Artificial Intelligence, strictly outside of the competition itself and only available to view within the Metaverse exhibition. It is a conceptual piece of five images by Igor Imhoff, a digital artist with a deep commitment to visual experimentation. The work is a reflection on the theme of the balance between human and artificial memories, explored and represented in their creative connections as well as in their natural imperfections. Igor Imhoff is part of the collective of 50 Italian artists at the Neoludica Game Art Gallery, a project that promotes synergy between digital and contemporary arts created by art critic Debora Ferrari and writer Luca Traini, who are also curators of Igor Imhoff’s work on display in the Metaverse.

This year also marks the début of the new PDE App, a platform designed to support all users who wish to explore the content of the exhibition and discover the artistic universe of finalist and winning works in an original way. Available to download from all major app stores, the App will allow users to access exclusive content about the finalist and winning works. As well as images of the photographic works, users will be able to access numerous original contributions from the artists: explanatory notes about the works, which can be listened to in the artist’s own voice or read as a text version, and short introductory videos about each photographer. The PDE app is intended to bring the public and the artists closer together, opening a dialogue that can be activated anywhere and at any time. During the physical exhibition at Palazzo delle Esposizioni in particular, visitors can frame the QR codes displayed alongside each work to use the app like a guided tour, enabling them to gain a deeper appreciation of the selected photographic works.

The app also has another exciting new feature: the works can be viewed in augmented reality mode, allowing users to project their favourite works onto their own walls in just a few simple steps, offering an opportunity to study them closer or simply to experience them in their own homes.

As in the 2022 edition, this year’s exhibition will be accessible at any time from anywhere in the world via the virtual tour, which can be accessed from the Award’s official website: https://premiodrivingenergy.terna.it/. The virtual tour recreates the rooms of Palazzo delle Esposizioni where the finalist works will be displayed, with the aim of offering a virtual experience that is even more faithful to the physical exhibition by allowing visitors to explore the halls of the gallery and move around the space in street view mode. The user experience has been further refined to offer a more fluid experience from mobile devices.

The finalist photographic works, selected from those submitted by the 2,800 entrants to this year’s Award, are being reviewed by the jury chaired by Lorenza Bravetta, Photography consultant and curator of Photography, Cinema and New Media at La Triennale di Milan, assisted by curator Marco Delogu and by an Executive Committee composed of Igor De Biasio and Giuseppina Di Foggia, Chairman and CEO of Terna, respectively.

Once again, the Driving Energy 2023 Award has received the Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Republic and continues to be supported by the Italian Ministry of Culture, the Italian Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Lazio Region and Roma Capitale.

The finalist works will be published in the fourth edition of the Driving Energy photography book, which represents the official catalogue of the Award.

For more information about the Award, please visit the official competition website.

Media Contact:

Tel +39 06 83138111
info@pec.terna.it

SOURCE: Terna