How does a “like” materialise? How many deserts become processors? Where is the work that connects us hidden?
In the folds of digital everyday life, where every click seems magical and every parcel seems to arrive “out of nowhere”, this exhibition brings to the surface what the illusion of the virtual tends to remove: the material. “Material Virtuality” invites us to look beyond the screen to discover the infrastructure, bodies and natural resources that lie behind every interaction with our devices.
The Limonaia di Villa Saroli in Lugano is transformed into a critical and sensory space: six art and research installations guide visitors through the invisible physicality of the digital world, between silicon beaches and work tents, theological tables and visual experiences.
Digital platforms, algorithms, artificial intelligence: behind the appearance of an immaterial economy lies a world of raw materials, energy and people that ‘Material Virtualities’ allows us to understand and explore.
The project is the result of a transnational collaboration between research, art, architecture and teaching. The exhibition is an evolving flow, which, after a first stop in Bologna (“Data Materialities”), now arrives in Ticino and will have other lives. The exhibition at Villa Saroli offers an enriched and rethought itinerary, becoming a hub for intergenerational discussion and education. Designed to introduce children to exhibitions from an early age, it includes a rich programme of talks and public meetings aimed at the general public.
Exhibition
The exhibition will take place from 30 October to 22 November 2025 at the Limonaia di Villa Saroli in Lugano and will be open to the public on Thursdays and Fridays from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Public events programme
There will be four public events, all with free admission.
Each event will be introduced by a brief presentation of the exhibition and followed by an aperitif.
- 30 October – Vernissage
- 5:00–5:30 p.m. Il Piccolo Circuito – Space for play and discovery
- 5:30–6:00 p.m. Presentation of the exhibition
- 6:00–7:00 p.m. Inaugural aperitif
- 31 October – Round table
- 5:30–7:00 p.m. Behind digital platforms. New forms of education for schools in Ticino
- 7:00–8:00 p.m. Drinks reception
- 19 November – Workshop
- 5:30–7:00 p.m. Social networks in the classroom
- 7:00–8:00 p.m. Aperitif
- 22 November – Finissage
- 5:30–6:30 p.m. Digital capitalism
- 6:30–7:30 p.m. Aperitif and closing party
The complete programme is available in the poster, which can be downloaded on the side.
Information and collaborations
Exhibition curated by Niccolò Cuppini and Miryam Pol
Based on a project by Carmen Lael Hines & Into the Black Box (Niccolò Cuppini, Mattia Frapporti, Maurilio Pirone)
With contributions from EXTENTS, Morgane Billuart, Rául Silva, Omar Tigrini and soju.studio
Artist biographies available at inca-project.eu and instagram.com/omar_tigrini_art
The exhibition is organised in collaboration with Stiftung Mercator, SUPSI, i2a and Big Tech Watch – Think Tank, as part of the European Horizon Europe INCA project (funded by the European Union, GA no. 101061653).
Partners:
- SUPSI (LUCI research area of the Competence Centre for Labour, Welfare and Social Research of the Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care)
- INCA (Increase Corporate Political Responsibility and Accountability) project
- Istituto Internazionale di Architettura
- Big Tech Watch – Think Tank