PULSE is a scientific installation developed to engage the public
and convey a more immediate and intuitive understanding of geothermal energy.

It arises from a collaboration between INGV and LIMINAL STATE, a union of science and art for dissemination and outreach.

PULSE is a transmedia creation that unfolds as a participatory experience that, through images, sound, heat, and light, allows the public to “enter” the heart of Planet Earth to explore
the sources of terrestrial heat, observe the behavior of geothermal fluids, and deepen the understanding of geothermal energy, a source of energy capable of contributing to the transition from fossil fuels to more sustainable resources for the environment and climate.

REALIZATION

The installation consists of two parts: a monolithic external digital sculpture, made up of two large LED walls, separated by heating lamps, on which videos and images flow to narrate terrestrial heat, from its deep origin to its surface manifestations; and an internal area dedicated to the dissemination of scientific content on geothermal resources, including a web platform accessible anywhere.

Thanks to the contribution of Enel Green Power, it is also possible to observe rocks from over 1000 meters deep extracted from the geothermal reservoirs of the Larderello fields, the oldest and at the same time most innovative geothermal complex in the world.

PULSE promotes a progressive vision of contemporaneity, fostering a harmonious hybridization between science and art, functional to the development of transdisciplinary research, investigations, and experiments.


Conveying complex messages through different forms of artistic expression means contributing to the democratization of scientific culture, using the emotional connection between the work and the viewer. In the creative act, both the artist and the scientist proceed through the decoding and recomposition of reality, observing it through each other’s eyes.


This method of correspondence allows them to offer useful tools to understand the present, identifying correlations and resonances, in an ideal dialogue between the artist’s studio and the scientist’s laboratory.

Transmedia artists Saverio Villirillo and Gregorio Comandini explore
the relationships between man and machine through installations, exhibitions, and social practices. With LIMINAL STATE they investigate the threshold between perception, knowledge, and imagination, creating works that lead the observer into aesthetic experiences in a liminal state.

By assembling, hacking, composing, and using new media, they guide the audience into ecstatic experiences where the boundary between real
and imaginary dissolves. Through speculative narratives, they activate liminal rites where one becomes a generator of enchantment, releasing magical matter from a disenchanted world.

Their transmedia aesthetics are characterized by dark environments, where light, sound, and images create cyclical patterns, suspensions, and hypnotic crescendos, culminating in unexpected breaks. Avoiding the fascination with technological innovation, they focus on perceptual imaginaries rich
in humanity, fantastic figures, and surreal scenarios, bringing forth new perspectives and visions.

The installation PULSE was realized with the contribution of the Sicilian Region as part of the dissemination activities of the IRGIE Project (Inventory of Geothermal Resources of the Aeolian Islands), and the initiatives dedicated to the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV 1999-2024)

IRGIE is a four-year project (2023-2026) coordinated by researchers Monia Procesi and Barbara Cantucci. It aims to characterize the geothermal resources of the Aeolian archipelago and increase knowledge and awareness of geothermal energy.

PULSE arises from a collaboration between INGV and the artistic collective LiminalState.

Curators of the PULSE Realization

Monia Procesi and Corrado Castellano (INGV)

PULSE Conception and Design

for INGV

Monia Procesi, Corrado Castellano

for LiminalState

Saverio Villirillo, Gregorio Comandini, Federico Varazi

PULSE Production and Development

Luca Scarlatta (LMNL), creative coder

Francesca Orsini (LMNL), UX/UI designer

PAGE SERVICE, internal structure realization

Federico Florindo (INGV), graphics and illustrations

Monia Procesi (INGV), texts and scientific content

Corrado Castellano (INGV), text revision

Special Thanks

INGV Technical Services Office for logistical support for the realization and installation

Rome Section 1 and Central Administration INGV for administrative support

INGV Graphics Laboratory

All research, technological, and technical-administrative staff
participating in the IRGIE project

INGV Environment Department for support to the IRGIE project

Year of PULSE Realization

2025

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