The Finger and the Moon #3.1 – Pre-Performance originates from the long site-specific fieldwork carried out in Genoa by LIUBA to engage people of different religious faiths and beliefs, in the process of finding those willing to take part in the participatory performance piece held in the deconsecrated church of the Museum of St. Augustine in Genoa in 2012.

The video was completed and first presented in December 2024 at the Villa Croce Museum of Contemporary Art in Genoa. The work forms a diptych with The Finger and the Moon #3.2 video, which focuses on the performance itself.