‘The Plaza Steps Through the Screen’ (‘Le Plaza traverse l’écran’) is an immersive mixed reality experience for Fondation Plaza, premiered at Art Genève 2026. Ahead of the reopening of Geneva’s largest historic cinema, visitors pass through a series of virtual portals across 300 square meters and step into iconic sequences of film history, from Gaspar Noé to Ursula Meier.

The installation reflects on the future of cinema in the digital age: changing modes of viewing, the transformation of the medium and the place of the body in the cinematic experience – a cinema without seats, without barriers and without distance.

Commissioned by Fondation Plaza, Geneva.

Presented at Art Genève, Palexpo.

Concept & production: Damien Greder, Simon Husslein, Yony Santos

President Fondation Plaza: Jean-Pierre Greff
General and Artistic Director: Fabien Gaffez
Director of Communication and Development: Sandra Mudronja
Cultural Project Coordinator: Nefeli Skarme

Artistic and technical collaborations: Samuel Jaccard (realization and sound design), Raphaël Muñoz / Aprobado (mixed reality development), Schaffter Sahli (graphic design and visual identity), Lara Grandchamp (voiceover)

Technical support: Diversion, A.D.O. Atelier des Ouates, Dorier Group, Theus Productions

Film research and rights: Till Brockmann, Nathalie Gregoletto

Photomontages: Atelier Simon Husslein

‘Talking Places’ is a mixed reality installation for two to four visitors, presented at the Digital Night of the Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF). Visitors answer questions about immersive storytelling, about their wishes and their worries, by walking into glowing answers placed in the room.

Utilizing mixed reality and artificial intelligence, the work writes the questions for each group from the reasons its visitors give for being there. At the end, a white sphere shows what connects the group, a black sphere what sets them apart. The installation addresses questions such as: How does a conversation change when the only input is where you stand?

Presented at GIFF Digital Night, Geneva.
First version presented at ADC Switzerland Creative Days, Zurich.

Direction & development: Simon Husslein and Arne Magold

Photos: BEYOND.PLACE

The semester project ‘Hybrid Encounters – Designing Togetherness in VR’ explores how shared experiences, part physical and part virtual, can create new forms of connection between people. It features seven projects by students from the Department of Interior Architecture at HEAD – Genève. Each project pairs a virtual environment with a physical installation, inviting two visitors to meet, move together and feel co-present.

Three selected projects were presented at the Digital Night of the Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF) 2026. Moving between reality and virtuality, each is designed to be experienced in pairs:

‘Sottsass’s Dream’ by Camille Frey and Caroline Favre – a game inspired by Ettore Sottsass.

‘Flying Together’ by Julie Pulfer and Damien Bourgeois – a flight guided by body movements.

‘Elderly Disco Club’ by Siria Petretti and Elisa Wütschert – an intergenerational experience combining rhythm and dance.

Under the direction of Simon Husslein, with the assistance of Chiara Kocis.

Head of Department: Dr. Javier Fernández Contreras
Scientific Deputy: Valentina De Luigi

Students taking part in the semester project: Damien Bourgeois, Léa Dagonneau, Alexia Dahman, Lalie Drouard, Milena Dubugnon, Caroline Favre, Camille Frey, Samanta Jurkunaite, Siria Petretti, Norah Pittet, Julie Pulfer, Kateryna Sushynska, Thaïs Vene, Elisa Wütschert.

Visiting lecturers and jury members: Lucie Emch, Steye Hallema, Alexia Mathieu, Aida Navarro, Michaela Pnacekova, Sarah Silverblatt-Buser, Alexandrine Stehelin.

XR support: Raphaël Munoz, Chloé Michel
Exhibition technical support: Raphaël Munoz (Sottsass’s Dream, Elderly Disco Club), Faustine Perillaud (Flying Together)

Images: HEAD – Genève

Film: HEAD – Genève

The exhibition ‘Oracle – Kaleidoscope of the Future’ showcases selected pieces from the museum’s collections, ranging from ancient artifacts and natural history exhibits to works of art. They attest to the diverse methods people have used for millennia in their attempts to interpret the future and find guidance amid uncertainty.

‘Der Spiegel zu Allerheiligen’ is an AI installation by Simon Husslein and Arne Magold  integrated into the exhibition. Before an oracle can be consulted, a question has to be found. Seated in an armchair, visitors choose between two opposing options with two buttons, while a voice guides them step by step towards a personal oracle question. The installation addresses the central questions of the exhibition: Whom do we trust? Whom do we listen to when we seek answers?

Exhibited at Museum zu Allerheiligen, Schaffhausen.