OVERLAPPING DISCRETE BOUNDARIES
Project, research and performance | Alessandro Carboni
Production | Formati Sensibili (2011)
Partners | Nanihin Art Centre, Foshan, Switch On, Kuala Lumpur, HanoiSoundstuff Festival, Hanoi, Asia tour management: NoiseAsia, Hong Kong
Support | Focus on Art and Science in the Performing Arts (with the support of the Cultural Program of the European Commission) | Nao – Nuovi Autori Oggi
Contributors | Jianan Qu, Saiaka Kaiwa – dance, Dickson Dee – urban exploration and music, Emanuele Lomello – technical direction, Z25 / Machiel Veltkamp – software and programming, Enzo Sivillo Fascetto – lighting design, Alessia Meloni – assistance and logistics, Riccardo Mantelli – software, “urban proximity detector”, Kembo – video documentation and photography (Asia tour), Elisa Poli – scientific contribution, Prof. Wallace Chang Ping-hung – scientific contribution and mentoring
Trusters | LaDU / Urban Density Lab – Faculty of Architecture, Cagliari, Festival Fabbrica Europa, Firenze, Digital D3D_Master Environment – NABA, Milano
Media Partner | Abitare
The research unfolded as an extensive and interdisciplinary process of urban mapping. Over a six-month journey, Alessandro Carboni explored diverse urban areas including Singapore, Foshan, Kuala Lumpur, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. During his residencies, he gathered a wide range of materials—texts, urban actions, images, video interviews, and field reports—later archived and partially published as a travel reportage in the architecture magazine Abitare. Building on this corpus, Carboni created Lau Nay, a performance developed in collaboration with Japanese performer Sayaka Kaiwa. The piece was presented in international festivals and contemporary art museums, accompanied by a 45-minute documentary film, screened in cinema programs and video art reviews. Alongside the performance, the project expanded into educational contexts through workshops and conferences held at universities in Italy and abroad, fostering dialogue between artistic practice, research, and pedagogy. The outcomes of this first phase of research opened new questions about the role of art as a generative form of knowledge. Beyond aesthetic value or issues of accessibility, the project positions artistic practice as an active agent, capable of reflecting on, but also transforming, the dynamics of urban everyday life—revealing its tensions, mutations, and possibilities for change.