Carola Bonfili's VR Game 'Second Order Reality' Wins Italian Council Grant

Carola Bonfili (Rome, 1981) has been awarded the 11th edition of the Italian Council grant for her project 'Second Order Reality'. The artist, known for building virtual, symbolic, and timeless landscapes using AI techniques, is developing a VR videogame that deconstructs narrative structures with the help of children as co-authors, based on Propp's folktale morphology. The project is realized with Fondazione smART – Polo per L'Arte and Aksioma – Institute for Contemporary Art (Ljubljana, Slovenia), curated by Ilaria Gianni and Daniela Cotimbo. Workshops involved philosopher Clotilde Calabi, artist Matteo Nasini, and illustrator Emanuele Malassisi. The final work includes a playable VR level, a trailer, sculptures, geological reflections on digital materials, a storyboard, and an audio composition by Francesco D'Abbraccio. The artwork will be acquired by the MAXXI Museum in Rome. Bonfili's practice explores immersive, dreamlike dimensions suspended between reality and imagination, often engaging the viewer. The project was discussed in a new Artribune podcast 'Monologhi al Telefono' by Donatella Giordano.