Design Academy Eindhoven
BA Tutor
NL, 2017-22
A week before defending my Master's thesis, Human and Machine, at Design Academy Eindhoven,
I was invited to teach at the Bachelor's program and run a course on materials and tactility. Over 5 years,
I developed and facilitated a popular 6-month elective for 2nd-year students from all design departments.
Make Material Sense centred on experimental Biomaterials Design & Biodesign using recycled organic 'waste'
and cultivated organisms, and included sensory experiences and empirical knowledge. Students worked
with their preferred resources, pushing the boundaries of what materials could be or do. I provided instructions
on sustainability, life cycle, research and development, experimental processes and techniques, curating design
and making biodegradable and compostable materials and things from scratch
with what was at hand.
I oversaw large student groups, 35 students on average, and organized and produced classes, lectures, exhibition visits,
and previews with curators at Dutch Design Week. I also arranged workshops with guest tutors such as
Belgue biohackers Glimps, local stars Precious Plastic, scent specialists from California’s Institute of Art and Olfaction,
art scientists who supported us, and former students popped in to help.
Together with my students, we assembled a Biomaterials Archive filled with samples, and showcased it at Dutch Design Week in 2019. Additionally, we conducted professional workshops outside of school at Berlin’s Floating University, participated in a conference in Brussels, opened the school’s first BioLab, and navigated through the challenges of lockdowns, among other adventures.
Make Material Sense on Instagram
Circular Biobased Building
Exhibition Consultant
NL, 2020
I met curator Pascal Leboucq (Company New Heroes / Biobased Creations) during Dutch Design Week 2019.
He had the renowned Mycelium Pavilion on display while I was exhibiting the Biomaterials Archive.
We taught Scenography students at Amsterdam University of the Arts, then he asked me to join The Exploded View
as a knowledge partner showcased at Dutch Design Week and set at the Circular Embassy.
The bio-based architectural model buildings unveiled new biomaterials developed by big brands, well-known
designer-makers, and some of my Design Academy Eindhoven students and guest tutors' works:
Sebastian Guzman Olmos (student) with a Bio MDF wall in deep beet,
Diana Milea (student) with a homegrown kombucha wall,
Carolyn Raff (guest tutor) with a bioplastic sequin wall
and Basse Stittgen (guest tutor) with a crushed eggshell floor.
Biomaterials Archive
Exhibition Tutor-Curator
NL, 2019
Two years after starting to teach Make Material Sense, I felt the urge to showcase a collection of biomaterial samples
that my students and I had been creating, keeping, growing, and sharing solely within our class for inspiration
so they could push their boundaries.
I discovered an excellent exhibition space, contacted former students, created a database, made new samples
at Precius Plastic, and along with my 35 students whom I had recently met, organized an exhibition entitled 'Biomaterials Archive: Samples & Other Stories' at Dutch Design Week.
The research-based exhibition changed every day, was in flux, biodegraded, and had dead and alive samples, medicine, bioluminescence, edibles and metamaterials. It featured a table full of samples divided by categories,
along with ingredients and recipes available on demand, biodesign objects, D-I-Y tools, a lecture on Design and Biology and a musicalised night-viewing event.
The aim was to present the archive publicly, allow students to exhibit, learn about curation, participate in the shows,
and contribute to the field's growth.
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‘A multi-sensory exhibition showcasing a selection of daring, resourceful and beautiful biomaterials’ explorations from students at Make Material Sense, a course at Design Academy Eindhoven for exploring resources locally, practically and sensorially in order to stretch the possibilities of what bio-based matter could be or do.
The Biomaterials Archive unfolds a catalogued, diverse collection of samples and biodesign objects, material alternatives to leather, plastic, marble and MDF, grown matter and recycled waste, Open-Source formulas, design and biological observations, DIY machines, a BioLab and the best stories from the class. It shows how these young designers are taking matter into their own hands by farming organisms on the school’s shelves or recycling what’s being trashed at home, school, city or farms, while they expand their network, close some loops and make new, shorter life-span materials that forge new paths into design and interior architecture.
Come to make sense of our (present) future before it’s eaten by microorganisms. Our world could soon be made from old bread and sand, rice and paper, moss and wool, unloved fruits bioplastics, peanut-MDF, recycled graves, waste coffee, mycelium, kombucha, orange peels, cow poo, cat hair or dust…
Created by current and past students at Make Material Sense, a programme for second-year Bachelors from all departments at Design Academy Eindhoven. Curated and assembled by their tutor Ana Lisa, and produced in collaboration with biohackers from Glimps (BE), scent-specialists at The Institute for Art and Olfaction (US) and Precious Plastic machines (NL).
This exhibition is #ZeroWaste #ZeroBudget. Everything on show is biodegradable, compostable, will be recycled or reused, is free-of-charge, lent, it’s our own, or grown for the occasion.’
Precious Plastic Beyond Plastic
Collaboration
NL, 2019
I have been collaborating with Dave Hakkens since he was a ‘designer-kid’ starting his studies at Design Academy Eindhoven. As a sustainable design journalist, I wrote about his early projects, hand later his Precious Plastic
set of machines inspired my MA Graduation Project, which he helped shape and kindly lent me early prototypes
to display at the Vanabbe Museum.
Since I started teaching, I asked Dave if my students could squeeze biomaterials through his machines for plastic,
but it was too difficult to set up. Two years later he launched 'Beyond Plastic', along with designer Jannis Kempkens,
which included a heat-press that turned food waste into products.
This led to plenty of knowledge exchange, a workshop for my Make Material Sense’s students at their Headquarters,
and a summer production of samples for our exhibition at Dutch Design Week.
MA Ecology Futures
MA Tutor
NL, 2019-21
I have helped bioartist and educator Xandra Van der Eijk initiate the first BioArt MA program in The Netherlands
called Ecology Futures and held at Avans University of Applied Sciences, in Den Bosch.
I created and led two six-month courses. Eco-Materials Culture, on biomaterials and bioart making, which included visits to exhibitions and Dutch Design Week, workshops by my former BA students from Design Academy, research,
writing, curating and experimentation.
Growing Culture was online during the lockdowns, and students learnt how to grow, care and process kombucha
for artistic purposes.
Floating University Berlin
Workshop Tutor
DE, 2019
In the Summer of 2019, I visited Berlin with two of my former students, Sebastian Guzman Olmos y Niels Ahrenberg
to run a 3-days workshop for making biomaterials from what was trashed or overgrowing around Tempelhof Airport.
The workshop was part of the Climate Care event organized by Rosario Talevi and Gilly Karjevsky and held
at the Floating University.
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Mid-Term exhibition and campaign for a more professional working space in which students can develpe new sustainable materials.
The projects are made by second year Bachelor students from all departments at the elective Make Material Sense, the exhibit is curated by Ana Lisa (tutor), Margherite and Tom (students), and aims to unveil the value of biomaterials we already make in our kitchens and gardens, while engaging other students and decision makers at our school.
We grow and care for materials, deal with our own and DAE’s waste, make new composites and more sustainable alternatives to plastic, leather, MDF, marble, cotton, silk, glues, glazes and dyes. We experiment, research, mess-up sometimes and also craft our own methods, tools and DIY machines.
We collaborate with bio-hackers, an international DIYBioLab community and are aware of the 2021 European ban of single-use plastic.
We now do all this in our kitchens, imagine what we could do four our own future if we had a DAE BioLab !
We Need a BioLab
Exhibition Tutor-Curator
NL, 2019
As Make Material Sense, my course at Design Academy Eindhoven grew, we needed a larger and better-equipped space
for cooking, growing things, experimenting and sharing projects.
So along with my students, we turned the Mid-term examinations into an exhibition/petition and successfully convinced decision-makers to invest in the school’s first BioLab.
Human and Machine
Graduation Project Student, Curator and Tutor
NL, 2017
For my Design Academy Eindhoven MA Design Curating and Writing thesis, I spent a year researching, writing,
visiting local designers I admire, and developing a project focused on a breed of students and alumni
from the same institution that builds semi-industrial machines to make things.
‘Human and Machine’ proposed a new BA department for students to make their manufacturing tools and machines,
and work with local resources. I created a 4-year program, selected tutors, made a campaign
and recruited future students at school. I also designed a promotional video along with fellow film-maker student
Yen-an Chen, institutional material, and a poster featuring 100 machines and designers, such as Dave Hakkens
and Olivier Van Herpt, who supported me on the initiative and lent me early prototypes and objects to showcase.
I curated an exhibit at Van Abbemuseum within the 'On Curating Design' exhibition and at Design Academy Eindhoven Graduation Show MINED held at Dutch Design Week.
Furthermore, I tested it during Make Material Sense’s first semester with a group of sound machine-maker students
who collaborated with alumni OWOW to incorporate sensors into their instruments.
Online Journalism
Inhabitat Photojournalist
WW, 2010-17
After some busy years in Argentina, curating exhibitions, an annual festival, making workshops,
speaking in public, judging at competitions, and advising designers and brands, I immersed myself in online journalism, contributing to various printed and digital publications but mainly dedicated to Inhabitat.com, a US-based weblog
on the latest sustainable design, architecture and innovation.
For 7 years I worked online spending my time between South America and Europe, where I enjoyed some hermit times,
but mostly indulged by reporting from Design Weeks worldwide, spotting new talents, and writing architecture and travel original features. I also worked as a food blogger for the same company, creating original vegan dishes and recipes.
Click on the images to read the articles.
Festival Sustentable Argentina
Festival Curator and Producer
AR, 2008-09
I returned to Buenos Aires after 7 years in London to discover plenty of sustainable design inspiration.
I researched, created a database, secured a great venue in the city’s heart, called up and visited designers' studios,
and assembled a small team of design friends and hands-on collaborators. We made an open call, reached out
to the press, and what began as a humble exhibition grew into a four-day vibrant public event.
Held at the luscious Botanic Gardens, Festival Sustentable celebrated emerging sustainable design, traditional crafts, materials and techniques from all corners of Argentina through a 100-object exhibition, musicalised workshops
in the gardens, conferences and documentaries.
It was the first of its kind, where people could learn better ways of designing and consuming through sustainable strategies, including a biodegradable design area. Its second edition attracted 8.500 visitors, national and international press recognition, creating demand while helping establish an ecosystem that still strives.
[re]design UK and China
Exhibitions Curator and Workshops Tutor
UK and CN, 2007
I graduated with a BA (Hons) in Eco-Design from Goldsmiths University of London with a photographic research book called ‘instinctivedesign', which captured how people creatively hack and fix things with what’s at hand.
During the Graduation Show, it caught [re]design’s eye and they invited me to join them for a few projects. The family-run organisation designed Sustainable Design educational events to promote good design practices and inspire other creatives to ‘[re]design design’.
We created and produced 5 projects over 4 months, including public exhibitions and workshops within festivals across
the UK and China, and a private installation in central London. We researched, selected designers, curated and produced exhibitions and publications, engaged with the public, cooked and travelled together.
The projects were, Climate Cool by Design, for the British Council China, Guangzhou. [re]design Workshops at Royal Festival Hall, London Design Festival. Contains, at Dott07 Festival (directed by John Thackara), Newcastle. SIT UP: Sustainable Seating Stories, at 100% Futures, 100% Design, London Design Festival. [re]design Xmas, installation
at Nesta Headquarters, London.
Among the designers we featured were Chris Cattle with a prototype of a grown tree stool, recycled plastic pioneers
Smile Plastics, and Cohda’s extruded waste plastic chair, which I sat on when it was still warm.
