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M9 Museum

M9 Museum, Venezia-Mestre, Italy, 2018
M9, Italy’s first object-free museum, explores the 20th century through video, interaction, and immersive installations on society and politics.
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M9 is a museum without objects, where 20th-century Italy comes to life through video, photographic, and archival materials from over a hundred sources. KARMACHINA, in collaboration with Engineering Associates, designed Sections 1 and 6, offering a unique view of social, demographic, and political change, intertwining collective history with individual experience.

M9 Museum 1
M9 Museum 2

Sections are structured on dual dimensions—macro and micro, public and private. Screens, interactive tables, 360° projections, and “magic mirrors” let visitors explore statistics and personal stories, while 3D audio and holograms enhance a fully immersive, multisensory journey.

M9 Museum 3
M9 Museum 4

Section 1 highlights how Italy’s population changed between 1901 and 2011. Three group portraits and six “magic mirrors” let visitors travel through time, while interactive graphics and projections trace migration routes and personal stories, bridging private experiences and collective memory.

M9 Museum 5
M9 Museum 6

Section 6 explores public and political life, from monarchy to republic, including world and colonial wars. After passing through the WWI trench and WWII shelter installations, visitors enter the grand political arena, where holograms of political leaders and 360° projections unfold. Private spaces recount crimes and lesser-known events, offering a comprehensive view of 20th-century Italy.

M9 Museum 7
M9 Museum 8

Project type

Museum

Dates

From December 2018

Location

Mestre, Italy

Client

Fondazione di Venezia

Scope of work

Multimedia project
Multimedia content production
Graphic design

Credits

Visitor Experience design and development by KARMACHINA and Engineering Associates.

The multimedia path was designed by KARMACHINA and Engineering Associates in collaboration with Dwa Design Studio and Davide Sgalippa.

KARMACHINA – Multimedia content production
Engineering Associates – Software applications and interactive systems development
Vinicio Bordin, Paolo Ranieri, Rino Stefano Tagliafierro – Art direction and directing
Paolo Ranieri – Project manager
Liliana Redaelli – Multimedia and software architect
Lara Aleotti – Assistant project manager & production direction
Lara Aleotti, Giulia Botta – Content coordination
Giulia Botta, Valentina Di Liddo – Iconographic research
Giuliano Corti – Screenwriting
Filippo Marta – Head of post-production
Grazia Canale – Graphic design
Elisa Seravalli, Filippo Marta, Mara Colombo, Giorgia Borroni, Lisa Cartuccia, Alessandro Grimaldi – Video editing and post-production
Grazia Canale, Sandra Hiralal, Francesco Pucciarelli, Elisa Seravalli, Lisa Cartuccia – Graphic animation
Enrico Ascoli, Alberto Modignani – Sound path design
Enrico Ascoli, Alberto Modignani, with the collaboration of Alessandro Nepote Vesin and Marco Fracasso – Sound design and 3D audio mix 6.5 “The Political Arena. Squares, Masses, Leaders”, curated by Luigi Agostini for iTek Srl
Bruno Aliprandi – Head of software development
Maksym Bodnar, Michele Costabile, Arash Roknian – Software development
Dario Gavezotti – Interactive systems development
Fabrizio Bonaga – User experience consultancy
Olivia Demuro – Producer
Rumbletumbleweed – Supply and installation of the holographic screen 6.5 “The Political Arena. Squares, Masses, Leaders”
Carlotta Balestrieri, Claudia Bellana – Copywriting
Giulia Di Vitantonio – Photo editing
Alessandro Orlandini – Photography 1.1 “Photo Memory. Italians in Three Group Portraits”

Alberto Astorri, Leonardo Apuzzo, Natale Ciravolo, Dario Maria Dossena, Virginia Galli, Toni Garbini, Francesco Meola – Voice-over actors 1.3 “On the Move. Migrations”
Dario Maria Dossena – Narrator 1.4 “From Cradle to Grave. Ages and Social Roles”
Alberto Astorri, Virginia Galli – Voice-over actors 6.4 “To Arms! Italians at War”
Claudio Spadaro (Benito Mussolini), Giovanni Visentin (Palmiro Togliatti), Marco Di Stefano (Aldo Moro), Dino Spinella (Bettino Craxi) – Actors 6.5 “The Political Arena. Squares, Masses, Leaders”
Roberto Accornero, Marco Cacciola, Marco Cavalcoli, Virginia Galli, Silvano Piccardi – Actors 6.7 “Breaking the Rules. Terrorism, Corruption and Crime”

Federico Ambrosi – Director of photography
Giada Palloni, Viola Pasetto (assistant) – Costume design
Roberto Mestroni, Cristina Davite (assistant) – Special make-up 6.5 “The Political Arena. Squares, Masses, Leaders”
Gianluca Veltri – Hair styling 6.5 “The Political Arena. Squares, Masses, Leaders”
Agenzia Anadema – Make-up and hair styling 6.7 “Breaking the Rules. Terrorism, Corruption and Crime”
Gioele Cortese, Alberto Modignani – Sound technicians
Chiara Polizzi – Casting direction

Video documentation by Filippo Marta
Carolina Tomassi Mariangeli – Actress

Special thanks to

Marco Pioventini, Marilena Terruzzi, Giacomo Avenali, Giulia Formica, Mattia Gattini, Laura Gilio, Anna Laura Leonello, Gabriele Medici, Giada Orsini, Sara Zanghi, Ilaria Zorra

Photography

Federico Ambrosi