Matt Ratto
Matt Ratto is an Assistant Professor and director of the Critical Making lab in the Faculty of Information at the University of Toronto. Past appointments include a postdoctoral position with the Netherlands Institute for Scientific Information (NIWI), researcher and founding member of the Virtual Knowledge Studio for the Humanities and Social Sciences in Amsterdam (VKS-KNAW), visiting scholar at the University of Amsterdam, and a research position in the Humlab, University of Umea, Sweden. His current research focuses on how hands-on productive work. In particular, Ratto’s work addresses the movement of digital media and information from screens and into the material environment. This trend, known as ‘ambient’ or ‘ubiquitous’ computing, or more colloquially as the ‘Internet of Things’, is the primary focus of his work and builds upon the new possibilities offered by open source software and hardware, and the developing technologies of 3D printing and rapid prototyping.
Helen Le Voi
Helen holds a Masters in Computer Related Design from the Royal College of Art. She enjoys exploring the boundaries of technology and the possibilities it can offer. She's been doing so for over 15 years specialising in Interaction Design and User Experience. Currently she's a visiting lecturer at UCL and Design Research Lead for an EU project about the Internet of Things and Interusability.
Stéphanie Bacquère
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Stéphanie Bacquère, born in 1978 in Paris, is an IT engineer involved in promotion of digital creation and technological innovation. After previous experience in BNP Paribas and in several advertising agencies, she cofounds a creative studio in 2006, Elegangz Interactive. She initiates working groups prospecting on virtual worlds, produces artworks and co-organises several exhibitions on digital art (as in Galerie Bailly , Door Studios, Palais de Tokyo). She sets up and chairs in 2008 the Reality Festival, first international festival of virtual digital art. She is cofounder and organizer of art-techno RADART and Art Game Weekend, a new concept of interactive meeting. Since 2007 she is also administrator of Silicon Sentier, an innovative SMEs association in “Ile de France”. Silicon Sentier has given birth to The Cantine.
In 2009, she founds with Marie-Noéline Viguié the company Nod-A. Nod-A is dedicated to help innovators, clients and partners, experimenting and broadcasting their products and services, and finding new market access. Currently Nod-A is working on the forthcoming incubator of the CENTQUATRE and on the FabLabsquared project. This FabLab (x2) project is going to facilitate display of all future FabLabs in France.
Furthermore Nod-A launches in 2010 the Cabinet of Digital Curiosities, a nomad structure between a gallery and a user acceptance testing. The beta test was presented in July 2010 during LiftwithFING in Marseille. On December 1st, 2010 Nod-A organises the first Council with La FING and MCD that will take place in “la maison des métallos” in Paris.