FOUNDING MEMBERS
Carla Diana
Designer, Author, Educator
Carla Diana explores the impact of future technologies through hands-on experiments in product design and tangible interaction. She has designed a range of products from robots to connected home appliances, and is a Lecturer in Smart Objects at the University of Pennsylvania and a Fellow at the innovation firm Smart Design where she oversees the Smart Interaction Lab. She is Advisor for the group Tomorrow-Lab, a young design firm that creates electro-mechanical solutions for smart devices, and an ongoing collaborator with the Georgia Tech Socially Intelligent Machines Lab.
Sophie Kahn
Digital Artist & Business owner, ScannerWorksNY
Sophie Kahn earned a BA (Hons) in Fine Art/History of Art at Goldsmiths College, University of London and an MFA in Art and Technology Studies at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She has exhibited her artwork internationally. Sophie has taught in the Department of Digital Arts at Pratt Institute and at Columbia College, Chicago. Sophie is a 2011 New York Foundation for the Arts Digital and Electronic Arts Fellow. She also runs ScannerWorksNY, a business providing 3D scanning and consulting services to artists, designers and filmmakers in New York City.
Annellie Koller
Architect & Designer, Researcher at Modern Meadow
Through the lens of biology, technology, and human ecology, Annelie Koller seeks to develop a new language of design for a better future. She is currently an experience design lead at the biotech startup, Modern Meadow, the first company to grow sustainable collagen-based materials in a lab. She is a founding member of the New York-based Lady Tech Guild that aims to empower women in the emerging manufacturing industry. She also co-produces the Biofabricate summit that showcases the current world of biologically grown materials for consumer applications. She holds a part-time lecturing post at the Parsons School of Design and is a past resident of the art and technology foundation, Eyebeam. She graduated with an M.Arch degree from the University of Pretoria, South Africa and an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons, New York.
Lauren Slowik
Design Evangelist for Education at Shapeways
Lauren is the Design Evangelist for Education at Shapeways, a global 3D printing service, and a part-time professor at Parsons the New School for Design, where she received her MFA in Design+Technology. She has contributed her design and technology expertise to organizations such as Apple, MoMA, the Ms. Foundation, Eyebeam Art+Technology Center, the Museum of Arts and Design and Etsy.com. Her research is focused on 3D design and 3D printing and the future of creativity in education with a focus on user experience design, storytelling, and interaction design.
Katie Wendt
Animator and Storyboard Artist
Katie is an animator and storyboard artist who works with new technology such as Wacom Cintiq screens and Adobe Flash to preserve the artistic integrity and quality of traditional hand-drawn animation. Working with Brooklyn-based Augenblick Studios, she has produced work for Comedy Central, Cartoon Network, VH1, Nickelodeon, FOX, and TED-Education, among many others. Her work has been screened in several animation festivals and showcases including Animation Block Party in Brooklyn, NY and the Ottawa International Film Festival. At Augenblick Studios, she has helped to develop a streamlined workflow for individual artists to produce high-quality animation with accessible tools and software. She is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design Film/Animation/Video program.
Ebony Fleur
3D Designer, Artist
Using a combination of state-of-the-art digital tools and traditional fabrication techniques, Ebony Fleur works across a range of media, from high jewelry, costume jewelry, product design to virtual sculptures and imagery in the form of 3D renders. Her work has been shown in galleries and boutiques around the world, and featured in publications including Vogue, W Magazine, Oyster, Frankie, Harper's Bazaar and more. Ebony is an experienced 3D designer, 3D modeler and renderer, and holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Jewelry Design) from the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales, Sydney.
Natalia Krasnodebska
Communications Specialist & Jeweler
Embedded in tech ecosystem for almost a decade and named a 'Leader of the 3D Printing Revolution' by the Creators Project for VICE, Natalia has long been an advocate for the maker movement. Whether through her own 3D printed jewelry, as a Community Manager at Shapeways or leading communications for Modern Meadow and Sketchfab, Natalia helps innovative companies craft their stories and connect with consumers.
She understands the challenges of building and growing design-based businesses and runs her own communications consultancy in the Netherlands.
Laura Taalman
3D Printing Strategist, Designer, Educator
Dr. Laura Taalman is a Professor of Mathematics at James Madison University, with a Ph.D. in mathematics from Duke University and bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago. Her published research is in algebraic geometry and knot theory, and she has authored nine books. She is also the founder of JMU 3-SPACE, the first general-education 3D-printing classroom in the country, and blogs about 3D printing and design at MakerHome and Hacktastic. In the 3D community Dr. Taalman is better known as "mathgrrl". She has consulted for 3D printing companies Shapeways, Ultimaker, and MakerBot, and has been featured on Thingiverse, Adafruit, and Science Friday.
Ashley Zelinskie
Digital Artist
Ashley Zelinskie is a conceptual artist working at the intersection of art, technology and mathematics. Her works span a variety of media, from large- and small-scale sculpture to canvas and print works, each created using cutting edge technology such as 3D printing and computer-guided laser cutting. Ashley’s work has been featured by Vice, Brooklyn Magazine, the New York Times and Hyperallergic. Her work forms part of the permanent collection of the US Department of State Art in Embassies Program. Ashley is a former resident of New Inc.—the New Museum’s Art and Technology Incubator—and is currently working on her solo exhibition with TORCH gallery, Amsterdam. She is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design.