.ART recently spoke with Federica Sorba (federicasorba.art), a visual artist and a graphic designer who works in between branding and immersive digital art. Federica Sorba explores the dynamic interplay between sound, space, and visuals. Her projects range from real-time audio-reactive visuals to projection mapping, often transforming architectural spaces into immersive sensory experiences. 

  1. You balance your work as a graphic designer at the University of Gastronomic Sciences with your practice as a visual artist. How do these two roles influence and inform each other?

Within the University, I work on visual arts and content creation: partly related to the University’s brand itself, and partly for the clients we manage as a graphic agency. The part of me that drives my work as a visual artist is fueled by my constant curiosity to experiment, particularly toward exploring beyond static graphic design. My desire to create new materials, shapes, and ways to express them pushes me to pursue artistic research, heading toward generative art. Sharing the results of this research with others feels like a powerful and direct act of expression. It helps me affirm myself and say, in a way, “This is who I am.”

The experimental and sensory approach I observe daily at the University, among people studying food—analyzing, smelling, touching it—has made me reflect on how visual creation cannot rely solely on the sense of sight. Every sensation enriches the product you’re designing. It’s up to each of us to find a way to translate a sensation into an “immersion.”

Photo of Federica Sorba, during the performance by Room Beyond the Portal, May 2024, OGR Turin. Photo: Simone Coppola.

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  1. What drew you to the field of real-time visuals and live performance? Was there a particular moment or experience that sparked your interest?

I had just started working at a creative agency years ago. On social media, I came across a series of reels and shorts showing these fluid, particle-like shapes that seemed alive, responding to the beat of the track playing underneath. The movement was so natural and organic that it felt real. I had experimented with similar things before using After Effects, but what I had just seen was on a completely different level. This sound-reactive mechanism that made the visuals respond left me completely stunned, especially because the image seemed to have its own physics and autonomous motion.

The idea of never seeing the same thing twice, where every moment becomes a unique and unrepeatable frame, struck me even more. From there, I started researching the tools to create these kinds of visuals and began experimenting on my own. Together with three other people, we later founded an artistic collective called Room, which allowed me, for the first time, to dive into the world of live performance. I am currently continuing to collaborate with them, and I have also founded an independent new media studio, NOVA, together with my partner.

Performance by Room Beyond the Portal, May 2024, OGR Turin. Photo: Simone Coppola.

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  1. Your work focuses on visually communicating the feelings evoked by music. How do you approach translating auditory sensations into visual form?

This is truly an interesting question. Perhaps because of my training as a graphic designer, I tend to translate external sensations—even those that differ from sight in a sensory way—into visual outputs, entering the realm of synesthesia. For example, a certain type of aroma might evoke tactile sensations, and it immediately taps into the visual perceptual sphere as well, bringing to mind a particular type of color.

When listening to any kind of sound output, I instinctively close my eyes and imagine shapes based on what I’m hearing. For instance, some low frequencies that inspire softness and roundness evoke soft, slow, enveloping forms, like a pulsating organ. On the other hand, high frequencies often convey a sense of sharpness and fragmentation—flashing lights and rapid rhythms.

Thoughts

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  1. Can you share more about your process for exploring the relationship between sound and form? What tools or techniques are central to your practice?

The thing that interests me most is the final output, the cohesion between image, sound, and the space in which we find ourselves: we are therefore entering the field of projection mapping, where the exhibition space plays an important and often decisive role in the overall success of the output. Depending on the architectural configuration of the space and the feasibility of the project, I make certain creative choices. For example, if I have the possibility to project onto a wall with particular architectural elements, such as relief features or statues, I would light them up to enhance the uniqueness of the space. Alternatively, if I know I will project onto a circular wall, it becomes easier for me to design circular shapes that will perfectly fit the form of the wall.

Finally, I try to imagine what the performance will be like: if I have the chance to collaborate with an orchestra, I know that the mood will be a certain type, with visuals of a specific kind of shapes and colors. On the other hand, if I were to collaborate with an experimental music artist, a different type of performance would emerge. To build my infrastructure at the system level, where I control the external audio that modifies the visual part in real time, I use Touchdesigner. To map the wall and make it a dynamic part of the performance, I usually use Resolume Arena.

(video) Performance Beyond the Portal at OGT Turin, May 2024. Footages: Simone Coppola.

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  1. Your visual mapping project at Venaria Reale beautifully integrated visuals with live music and architecture. What inspired this collaboration, and how did you approach creating an immersive experience for this space?

I was hired by an agency that organizes medium-to-large events in Turin, where the presence of a visual designer was required to illuminate the interior of Venaria Reale during its night opening with guided tours. The evening would include a string concert, accompanied by projections, and knowing that I was in a classical and baroque setting, the challenge for me was to integrate multimedia and dynamic material within a heritage site, without altering its essence. Project mapping helped me with this, as it allowed me to fit the projection within a portion of the wall framed by decorations and stuccoes, and to light them up. My biggest fear was dealing with the large dimensions of the space, especially concerning the brightness power of the projector.

(video) Performance Beyond the Portal at Reggia di Venaria, July 2024. Footages: Simone Coppola.

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  1. Projection mapping is a fascinating medium. How do you balance technical precision with creative expression in such projects?

    Projection mapping is as important to me as the complexity of the visuals projected because it serves as the gateway through which your visual work reaches the audience. I believe it’s an excellent tool that allows you to create masks and, in a way, segment the image. It’s like dressing a building with the graphic outfit you’ve designed. The magic of this technique lies in virtually expanding physical space, creating a multimedia environment where there was none before, turning any surface into a canvas for projection.

I find it fascinating to see complex objects in reality, like a statue or a cube, suddenly come to life while remaining physically static in their material form.

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  1. Real-time visuals and projection mapping are rapidly evolving fields. How do you see these mediums developing in the future, and how do you see your work evolving with them?

    It’s truly beautiful to see that new media and multimedia art are expanding even in the context of large artistic productions and performances. I would like to introduce people who are not yet familiar with this field to the potential of these tools, because I believe they can become valuable assets not only in the purely artistic domain but also in the social sphere.

    The virtual expansion of physical space would allow interaction with the medium on a more immersive level, promoting learning and information accessibility. This could provide strong support in education and training, as well as in assisting and supporting vulnerable individuals or those with learning difficulties.

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  1. If resources and constraints were no issue, what would be your dream project, and why?

    If there were no constraints, I would love to design an immersive installation that engages all our senses: where the pressure of touch changes colors and modulates sound frequencies accordingly.

Imagine that every action triggers a cascade of reactions, setting off others, making the beginning and end indistinguishable. It’s as if the participant were inside a highly sensitive environment, where the senses interact through reciprocal action-reaction cycles, fully immersing the individual in the experience of the installation.

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  1. And finally, your online presence is located within .ART domain zone. Why is it important for you to be on .ART?

Reading my name alongside the .art domain is something truly powerful and meaningful to me. Seeing it makes me feel as though I’ve finally found a place, an affirmation of myself, in the art world.

I see the .ART domain as a community of artists and curators where it’s possible to build a network. I am very happy to be part of it because I will have the chance to meet new artists and explore new opportunities for connection and collaboration.