(AGENPARL) – ven 11 agosto 2023 All of the institutional sponsors of the first edition are confirmed for this year’s competition
TERNA: METAVERSO, APP AND VIRTUAL TOUR: THE TECHNOLOGY
BEHIND THE “DRIVING ENERGY AWARD 2023 – CONTEMPORARY
PHOTOGRAPHY”
From the physical exhibition to virtual events: new ways to access and enjoy the exhibition
at Palazzo delle Esposizioni go live on 26 September
Available to download from all major app stores, the new App will allow users to access
exclusive digital content about the finalist and winning works.
Rome, 11 August 2023 – 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 now 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.