Enacting the Genius Loci of the place through a digital storyteller. Reflections from an interactive exhibit.

This paper presents the results of a design activity aimed at creating an interactive installation – Leonardo Plays Leonardo. Milan. Life. Nature. – at Palazzo delle Stelline in Milan. Exploiting rear-projected holographic screens, a human-sized digital Leonardo da Vinci comes back to life and tells stories about his period in Milano, his life and relationship with Nature, enacting the genius loci of the place. Developed through an iterative process of design, involving several professionals and employing open source hardware and software, the exhibition is made of three interactive installations activated by the presence of visitors and controlled thanks to gestures. This paper reports on the development of the project and on its testing, performed through both a quantitative and qualitative approach and presents the results obtained.