Team
Taqi Shaheen
Curator
As an artist, filmmaker and educator from Pakistan, Taqi’s work crosses mediums and defies genre distinctions to fashion observations of contemporary subcultures and their urban landscapes. He uses transmedia formats to research and construct non-fictional narratives through on-site experiences, exhibitions, games, films and publications. His non-fiction film, exhibition and publication works include ‘Machi Wachi: An Environmental Strategy Game’, ‘Subjective Atlas of Pakistan’ (Oxford University Press), ‘Lessons on Lessons’, ‘The Petman Girls’, ‘Whose Pakistan is it anyway?’, ‘Morris Mata’, ‘Kundun’ and an animated short film, ‘Congregation of the Distressed’. His works have been featured in various publications and exhibitions including Leonardo Journal (MIT Press), BBC, Media Architecture Biennial, Shanghai Himalayas Museum, and International Symposium of Electronic Arts (ISEA).
Usman Haque
Artistic Director
Trained as an architect, Usman is founder and creative director of Umbrellium, a London-based design & build studio dedicated to transforming urban environments. His work embraces many disciplines, including design, architecture, the internet of things, urban community infrastructure, and large-scale public art/performance. He was appointed a Design Council Ambassador in 2021 and to the Mayor of London’s Data for London Advisory Board in 2022. His work has been exhibited internationally, including the Institute of Contemporary Arts (London), the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, the Barbican (London), Museum of Modern Art (Aalborg), Seoul Museum of Art, The Architectural League of New York, Science Gallery (Dublin), Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media, Netherlands Media Art Institute and the National Art Museum, Beijing. Usman received the 2008 Design of the Year Award (interactive) from the Design Museum, UK; a 2009 World Technology Award (art); the Japan Media Arts Festival Excellence prize (2004) and the Asia Digital Art Award Grand Prize (2005).
Ling Tan
Design Advisor
Ling Tan is a UK based Singaporean designer and artist working within the field of social engagement, technology, citizen participation and politics. Originally trained as an architect, her work explores citizens’ interaction with the built environment and our collective agency and responsibility in tackling complex issues surrounding our cities. She works with diverse communities across the UK and internationally to devise projects using technology that help them make sense of their environments, express opinions in a playful and performative way, and collectively address issues including public safety, air quality, climate change and gender safety. She is currently working on projects that explore new digital-physical participatory methodologies. Ling is currently an Associate Artistic Director at Kakilang and a Senior Design Lead & Creative Technologist at Umbrellium. She is also a frequent panellist and public speaker on urban technology issues and citizen participation. Her work is exhibited internationally in places such as Centre Pompidou (FR), Victoria and Albert Museum (UK), Barbican (UK), Somerset House (UK), HeK (Switzerland), Zebrastraat (BE), Zollverein(DE), Matsudo (JP), Wits Art Museum (South Africa), and featured in magazines and websites across the globe such as Dezeen, Wired and Fast Company.