Aura Fico · 17 May 2022. Photograph: Gabriele Galimberti.
An unconventional installation conceived by Jacopo Baboni Schilingi and curated by Renata Summo O’Connell and MAD artistic director Valentina Gensini. Il Respiro dei Sogni, taking shape on 24, 25 and 26 May in the Terzo Giardino, involves Artegiro Contemporary Art, the Institut français, Florence’s Academy of Fine Arts and the Luigi Cherubini Conservatoire.
Il Respiro dei Sogni will be a genuinely collective installation made from visitors’ dreams. From 24 to 26 May, between 10 a.m. and noon and between 5.30 and 7.30 p.m., anyone may enter the Terzo Giardino via Lungarno Serristori and record dreams on their phone: nighttime dreams, utopias or simple hopes for the future. Dreams are our most personal and at the same time most powerful dimension. When we dream, we can be whoever we want and do what we most desire, entering a transparent dimension where lying is impossible, just as with breathing.
Participants’ heartbeats and breathing rhythms will be recorded by a sensor on the chest. These biometric data and the dream recordings, interpreted by an actress and an actor to preserve anonymity, will provide the starting material for Jacopo Baboni Schilingi’s work.
Image: a visualisation from the Argo device.
The artist’s project seeks to express dreams through an installation to be presented in September 2022 at MAD and in the Terzo Giardino. The location is no accident either. The Terzo Giardino embodies an ecosophical sustainability that respects and understands the environment in synergy with the relationships formed within it. Collecting dreams creates a further synergy between the community of individuals and the place where Il Respiro dei Sogni comes to life.
On Wednesday 18 May at 5.30 p.m., the artist will publicly present the project with Claudio Rocca, director of the Academy of Fine Arts, and Giovanni Pucciarmati, director of the Luigi Cherubini Conservatoire. On Thursday 19 May at 6 p.m., Jacopo Baboni Schilingi will also present a recital for voice and live electronics with Nicholas Isherwood [the archived article prints “Nicholas Sherwood”].
How to participate in The Breath of Dreams
Participation is free and voluntary, open to citizens of the world of any age who are in Florence from 24 to 26 May. At the start, participants will sign a release allowing their recordings to be used and interpreted by the two actors. Within the Terzo Giardino, they may walk freely while recording their dreams. Those who wish can book a slot by contacting MAD Murate Art District. Accessibility for people with reduced mobility is ensured by small bridges facilitating entry to this green area in the heart of Florence.