Blue Forest curated by Fabrizio Plessi

In 2015, IULM's Contemporary Exhibition Hall opened with Foresta Blu, a site-specific installation by Fabrizio Plessi, one of the leading exponents of Italian video art. The work transformed the space designed by studio 5+1AA into a visionary environment, where nature and technology come together in an immersive and evocative experience.

The installation consisted of six large logs suspended in the air, in dialogue with as many digital water mirrors, created through video projections. The sound of rain, a recurring element in Plessi's work, and the blue light diffused in the environment amplified the suggestion, transporting the viewer to a universe suspended between dream and reality.

The exhibition reflected on themes dear to the artist, such as the relationship between technology and emotion, the interaction between natural and digital elements, and the possibility of an art capable of humanizing technical innovation. In this sense, Blue Forest fit into the research that Plessi has pursued throughout his career, evoking works such as Mariverticali (Venice Biennale, 2011), in which boats emerge from darkness with video images that evoke the sea.

The scenographic effect of the Blue Forest was amplified by a circular opening in the ceiling of the room, defined by the artist as an "imaginary moon": a window to the sky that, as the natural light changed, changed the perception of the entire environment, just as happens in a real forest.

Plessi himself described his work as a reflection on water, a vital element that traverses time and space, restoring the memory of what it has absorbed over the centuries. But Foresta Blu was also a tribute to the birth of a new cultural space within IULM University, dedicated to study, research and artistic experimentation.

The inauguration of the exhibition took place on Oct. 13, 2015: the event represented a significant step in the evolution of the campus, which with the new IULM 6 expanded its offerings to include a 600-seat auditorium, a second, more intimate 146-seat hall, the headquarters of the Scuola Politecnica di Design and theIULM University Club, which also housed a starred restaurant.

With Foresta Blu, IULM not only kicked off its exhibition activity with a striking work, but also sanctioned an opening toward the city and the territory, in its desire to transform the campus into a cultural hub capable of dialoguing with Milan and the contemporary art world.