Eigra Festival

Thesis project by Chiara Basili, Aurora Buscaglia, Martina Capruzzi, Letizia Donetti

Academic year

2025-2026

Darkness as a new imaginary for public space

Eigra Festival explores the relationship between people, public space and the perception of darkness in urban green areas. The thesis starts from the observation of a widespread phenomenon: many parks, perceived as safe and welcoming during the day, are gradually abandoned in the evening because of poor lighting and a perceived lack of safety. The project approaches this gap not only as a functional issue, but as a matter of perception, experience and urban imagination.

From this research, the project develops an immersive festival designed to bring new vitality to green spaces at night. The name comes from Eigengrau, the dark grey perceived by the eye in the absence of light: a concept that transforms darkness from a sign of emptiness or threat into a space open to imagination. Light installations, immersive paths and a visual communication inspired by pareidolia create an accessible and participatory experience, redefining the way people move through and share the urban nightscape.
 

Assessorato alla Cura della città, verde pubblico, parchi e fiumi invited students to reflect on urban greenery as a language, a system of relationships and a design device. Starting from the dialogue between design, botany, art and technology, the theses explored new forms of communication around the relationship between humans, nature and the city, translating complex biological phenomena into accessible analogue and digital experiences.

Supervisor: Andrea Viberti
Co-supervisor: Nicola Bertelloni