An artistic-research project in the Italian Volcanic Region (2025–27)
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Geomorphologies is an art and research project by Philip Samartzis and Leandro Pisano exploring the volcanic landscapes of southern Italy. Through field recording, photography, writing and conversations with local residents, the project examines how geological forces enter daily life: through the ground beneath buildings, the availability of water, the movement of boats and the maintenance of gardens, streets and homes.
Working across Vesuvius, Campi Flegrei and the Aeolian Islands, Geomorphologies brings immediate encounters into contact with processes unfolding over centuries and millennia. Eruptions and seismic activity form part of a wider enquiry into places shaped by tourism, erosion, migration and changing patterns of habitation. Recordings, photographs and texts follow these overlapping forces, attending to the ways people occupy, interpret and continually adjust to environments that remain in motion.
‘Geomorphologies: Inhabiting Uncertainty’, a bilingual Italian–English book by Philip Samartzis and Leandro Pisano, will be published in two editions by Viaindustriae in 2027.
Geomorphologies is funded by the Hibou Foundation, with institutional support from RMIT University.
Fieldwork in the Italian Volcanic Region (2025–27)
Field Notes
- I.Preface
- II.(Field Note) Monte Somma
- III.(Field Note) Campi Flegrei
- IV.(Field Note) Naples
- V.(Field Note) Stromboli
- VI.(Field Note) Salina
Writing
Field Recordings
- I.Baia (Waterfront Security Fence)
- II.Bay of Baia (Fumarole Bubbles)
- III.Pisciarelli Geothermal Field (Fumorolic Chimney)
- IV.Monte Somma Tammorra (Vittorio D’Avino)
- V.Somma Vesuviana (Borgo Casamale Ambience)
- VI.Somma Vesuviana (Birds)
- VII.Somma Vesuviana (Bottle Collection)
- VIII.Somma Vesuviana (Soccer Practice)
- IX.Baia (Tempio di Mercurio)
- X.Stromboli (Volcano Erupting)
- XI.Stromboli (Scari Beach)
- XII.Salina (Malfa Harbour)
- XIII.Salina (Festa di Santa Marina)
- XIV.Stromboli (Traffic)
- XV.Salina (Santa Marina Harbour)
- XVI.Ginostra (Birds and Insects)
- XVII.Salina (Madonna del Terzito, Garden Maintenance)
- XVIII.Somma Vesuviana (Santa Maria Maggiore Bells)
- XIX.Ginostra (Porto Pertuso)
- XX.Ginostra (Shade Umbrella)
Stromboli (24)
Campi Flegrei (24)
Somma Vesuviana (24)
Salina (24)
Naples (24)
People
Philip Samartzis is a sound artist and researcher exploring the relationship between environmental change and the ways people inhabit places shaped by uncertainty. Fieldwork in Antarctica, the Swiss Alps and southern Italy informs projects developed through recording, photography and writing, with equal attention to everyday activity and environmental extremes. His collaborations with artists, scientists and local communities bring different forms of knowledge into contact with observations and experiences gathered in the field. Listening guides his approach, with attention to how sound travels through materials, structures and open spaces, and how these conditions influence the experience of a place. His work is presented internationally through exhibitions, performances and publications.
Leandro Pisano is a curator and researcher working across sound, ecology and rural geographies. His practice examines how technology and environmental change shape territories often regarded as peripheral, with particular attention to the knowledge and cultural practices of the people who live there. He is the founder and artistic director of Interferenze and Liminaria, platforms connecting experimental art with rural communities in southern Italy. Through exhibitions, residencies and public programmes, he brings artists, scholars and residents together to investigate the histories and changing conditions of these places. His work considers how listening can open different understandings of territory, belonging and rural life.
Project partners
Support partners
Interzona (Irpinia/Sannio, Southern Italy)is a cultural organisation focused on sound, territory, and contemporary art in rural contexts. Promoter of Interferenze and Liminaria, Interzona supports site-specific projects, residencies, and critical research addressing ecological and postcolonial themes through experimental and collaborative practices.
The Hibou Foundation is a philanthropic organisation supporting interdisciplinary projects at the intersection of art, science, and social impact. It funds creative initiatives that explore environmental change, cultural diversity, and community resilience.
Regional partners
Collettivo Zero (Campi Flegrei) is an interdisciplinary collective creating site-specific artworks, performances, and public programs that reflect on resilience, transformation, and the precarious relationship between humans and volcanic landscapes. Their work blends visual art with environmental reflection, grounded in the historical layers of the Campi Flegrei.
Marosi Festival (Stromboli, Aeolian Islands) is a contemporary art festival that merges performance, visual art, and sound within Stromboli’s volcanic terrain. The festival creates immersive, site-specific experiences that explore nature, energy, and transformation, inviting international artists to respond to the island’s dramatic environment.
Amaneï Salina, Aeolian Islands) is a collaborative art group fostering Salina’s cultural and environmental heritage through installations, exhibitions, and sustainable practices rooted in Mediterranean life. Amaneï plays a key role in positioning the Aeolian Islands as vibrant sites of creative and ecological exploration.
Tramandars (Mount Vesuvius) is a cultural collective devoted to sharing and preserving art through contemporary, socially driven practices. Engaging with both local and international artists, Tramandars fosters community, education, and cross- cultural exchange with a focus on building connections that extend across time and place.
