team | collaborators | alumni
Team members
Prof Dr Elise van den Hoven MTD
Project leader – UTS & TU/e
elisevandenhoven.com
Elise van den Hoven has a background in human-computer interaction and interaction design research and studies how to Materialise the digital in everyday environments through tangible and physical interaction. Her favourite range of application areas has to do with Memories, in particular supporting everyday human remembering activities. That is how she came up with this project and its name: Materialising Memories. Elise is professor in the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology of the University of Technology, Sydney, Australia, and associate professor in the Department of Industrial Design of the Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands. In addition, she is associate investigator at the ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders and honorary senior research fellow at the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, University of Dundee.
Dr Laurie Miller
Associate professor – Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
sydney.edu.au/medicine/people/academics/profiles/laurie.miller.php
Laurie Miller has a background in Biology and Psychology as an undergraduate at Westminster College in Pennsylvania and a PhD in Psychology from McGill University in Montreal Canada. Prior to coming to Sydney in 1994, she undertook a two-year postdoctoral position at the University of Auckland and then was employed in a university hospital in London, Ontario. She is currently a Clinical Neuropsychologist at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Senior Clinical Lecturer in Medicine at the University of Sydney. As a Chief Investigator in a 7-year, ARC Centre of Excellence Grant into Cognition and Its Disorders, her latest research has focussed mainly on the effects of neurological disorders on memory. She has been testing ways of helping people with memory disorders, including group-based retraining programs and individual interventions. With the Materialising Memories team, she is keen to participate in using product design as a way of gathering more information about how memory works and ways in which it can be enhanced.
Laura Ramos
PhD student – UTS
Laura holds a BA in Liberal Studies from the Gallatin Division at New York University, a MA in Communication and MA in Asian Studies from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, and an MBA from the Australian School of Graduate Studies at the University of New South Wales. Over the past two decasdes, she has led programs and teams in the delivery of digital capabilities for mass consumer audiences in public and private sector organisations. In February 2015, she started a PhD in Design at the University of Technology Sydney, investigating how memory lapses impact older individuals and how digital technologies can support in assisting memory function and improving their quality of life. Supervised by Elise van den Hoven.
Maarten Versteeg
PhD student – TU/e
brech.nl
Maarten obtained a Bachelor and Master degree in Industrial Design Engineering at Delft University of Technology. During the Master phase of his studies, he composed an individual curriculum with courses from Industrial Design, Architecture, Art History (at Leiden University) and Retail Design (Piet Zwart Institute). Next to that, he was trained as a goldsmith. After graduating he started his own jewellery brand Brech, focusing on the application of innovative materials, production methods and concepts in jewellery.As a part-time lecturer-coach at Eindhoven University, Maarten got interested in the combination of jewellery and electronics. In 2016, this led to the start of his PhD-research ‘Designing Interactive Personal Jewellery’. Supervised by Caroline Hummels & Elise van den Hoven.
Tommaso Armstrong
PhD student – UTS
https://tomma.so
Hi, I'm Tomm 👋. I’m a Human Computer Interaction PhD student and casual academic at UTS with undergrad degrees in IT and Transdisciplinary Innovation (BCII). My research explores how the design of social technologies shapes the experiences of queer people.
Nandini Pasumarthy
PhD student – RMIT/UTS
nandinipasumarthy.com
I’m a PhD student at RMIT University, Victoria, Australia. My research investigates the design of playful technologies to understand and raise awareness on the factors that influence human gut health. I’m curious to understand the role of playful design in facilitating a space for the understanding and reflection of health information in users. My methodological tools for exploration include research through design that follows an iterative design process involving ideation, prototype and testing. My mode of inquiry involves in-depth interviews and observation. I enjoy interdisciplinary research and believe in cross-collaboration with colleagues from diverse disciplines to conduct well-informed user-experience research.I enjoy the process involved in the translation of complex science topics through play. I believe such translation can have real-world impact on the decision-making surrounding human health and wellbeing. I’m interested in opportunities that focus on interaction & user-experience design research at the intersection of play, cognition, human health and well-being.
Rakesh Patibanda (MDes)
PhD student – Monash Uni/UTS
rakeshpatibanda.com
I'm Rakesh, and I'm here to help. Really, that's about it. I provide design solutions in a friendly way that empathise with the users' needs. I can help define the problem, research to find ideas that solve that problem, create and test solutions from those ideas, and then present those solutions back to stakeholders both in business and technology. I am excellent to work with – I'm diligent, thoughtful, experienced, and of course, an excellent listener. I'm currently conducting my PhD research in HCI, Memory and Play at the Exertion Games Lab, Faculty of IT, Monash University and Materialising Memories Lab, UTS.
Daria Kalmanovich
PhD student – UTS
Daria holds a B.Sc. in Economics and Finance and M.Sc. (Research) in Economics and Marketing both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She has over 10 years of experience in information systems and data analysis, providing exemplary analytical services to clients across a variety of industries and businesses both in Australia and overseas. While working at the University of New South Wales has been inspired by the prospect of further developing research aspirations and becoming a member of the Australian research community. As technology enthusiast and innovation driven individual she finds 'Materialising Memories' program fascinating and appealing to her research and professional interests, as Human Computer Interaction is multidisciplinary field which includes human psychology, computer science and design factors. Her research explores the impact of social media videos on autobiographical memories.
Nathalie Overdevest
PhD student – Monash Uni/UTS
Yufeng Wu
PhD student – UTS
Yufeng Wu is a PhD student, HCI researcher and designer. He is currently studying at the University of Technology Sydney. His research focuses on how technology can be used to enhance the well-being of people in need. Prior to this, he received a master's degree in communication design (Pratt Institute). He has worked as a User Interface/User Experience Designer at Tencent.
Alaa Almohanna
PhD student – UTS
Gisela Michelle
Master by Research student – UTS
MM-er since 2021. A master by research student at UTS.
Collaborators
Prof Dr ir. Berry Eggen
Promoting professor – TU/e & UTS
berryeggen.com
Berry Eggen is a design researcher with an interest in information ergonomics, multimodal interaction (including light and sound) and intelligent user interfaces; he is a full professor at the Industrial Design department of the Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands and an adjunct professor at the Design, Architecture & Building faculty of the University of Technology, Sydney, Australia.
Prof Dr Panos Markopoulos
Promoting professor – TU/e & UTS
idemployee.id.tue.nl/p.markopoulos
Panos Markopoulos studied electrical engineering and computer science in the National Technical University of Athens and human-computer interaction in Queen Mary University of London. He is currently a professor in the Department of Industrial Design of the Eindhoven University of Technology on the topic of Design for Behaviour Change. His interests extend in several areas of the fields of human-computer interaction and interaction design such as model-based design, privacy and trust, social games for children, evaluation methodology for children, connectedness between family and friends, persuasive technologies, and healthcare.
Dr Wendy Moncur, FRSA
Professor – Dundee
dundee.ac.uk/djcad/staff/profile/wendy-moncur.php
Wendy Moncur is a Professor in Socio-Digital Interaction at the University of Dundee, where she leads the Living Digital group. She is also a Visiting Scholar in DAB, UTS and Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath. Intrinsically interdisciplinary, yet grounded in Computing, her research program focuses on the design of technology to support being human in a Digital Age. Wendy visited the Materialising Memories lab as a Key Technology Partner Visiting Fellow in September-October 2014, and co-supervises Daniel Herron with Elise van den Hoven. She is Principal Investigator on the EPSRC-funded research program “Charting the Digital Lifespan”, which investigates how the digital is woven into the fabric of people’s lives across three transition points. Wendy’s research has also explored the design and use of technology during other significant points across the human lifespan–serious illness, becoming a carer, end of life, and bereavement.
Dr Clementine Thurgood
Lecturer – Swinburne Uni
uts.edu.au/staff/clementine.thurgood
Clementine Thurgood has a background in psychology and psychophysiology after obtaining her Bachelor’s degree at Swinburne University of Technology (hons). She then completed a PhD. in experimental aesthetics at the same university followed by a postdoc in design aesthetics. She is currently a lecturer in the School of Design at the Swinburne University of Technology where she is studying how design methods and tools support changes in (product) meaning for innovation. She is also investigating the relationships between consumer products and the emotions and meanings people associate with them. As part of the Materialising Memories team, she co-supervises Daniel Orth with Elise van den Hoven.
Dr Rens Brankaert
Assistant professor – TU/e & UTS
tue.nl/en/research/researchers/rens-brankaert/
Dr. Rens Brankaert, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Industrial Design at the University of Technology Eindhoven, the Netherlands. His studies revolve around design research for active and healthy ageing, with a specific interest and focus on designing for and with people living with dementia. Rens is Key Technology Partner Visiting Fellow at University of Technology Sydney hosted by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (Dr. Gail Kenning) and the Materialising Memories group (prof. Elise van den Hoven). In his research Rens focuses on inclusive human-centred design, interaction design and multi-stakeholder innovation.
Dr Gail Kenning
Researcher – UTS
gailkenning.com
As an artist, designer and researcher Gail’s research explores technology in craft and expanded textiles in relation to health, wellbeing, creative ageing and dementia.She is the recipient of funding for research related to craft and wellbeing and is a member of the international collaborative research project HANDS: Helping Assist With New Devices for Seniors. Gail was awarded a PhD from University of New South Wales for her work exploring evolutionary patterns and code in craft-based textile forms. She has exhibited and screened works internationally and nationally, and worked in research and data visualization in industry for over ten years—developing acclaimed commercially available software. Gail was awarded a funded Design Union Research Fellowship at University of Technology Eindhoven for 2015 and will carry out research in relation to implicit memory, ageing and dementia.
Prof Kristin Beeler
Research Associate – UTS
kristinbeeler.net
Kristin Beeler is a visual artist based in Los Angeles area, whose body of work includes contemporary jewelry, photography and object making. Her studio practice is at the intersection of beauty, memory, the body and jewelry as mnemonic device. She earned her MFA in Jewelry and Metalwork from the University of Arizona and a Bachelor’s in Crafts from Berea College. She has been Visiting Artist at Cranbrook Academy of Art, and resident artist at Cleveland Institute of Art and Kent State University. She exhibits and lectures internationally and her work has been widely documented.Kristin is Professor of Art and head of Jewelry and Metalwork at Long Beach City College in the Los Angeles area. As part of the Materialising Memories programme, she will collaborate on the study of jewelry as a memory object.
Alumni
Dr Doménique van Gennip
Researcher – UTS & TU/e
sinds1984.nl
Doménique has a background in industrial design and human-technology interaction, with degrees obtained at Eindhoven University of Technology. His Master thesis focused on the psychology of mediated affect in social communication. In June 2013 he started his PhD thesis within this project at UTS, studying the use of personal photos and the serendipity of reminiscing in everyday life. His thesis, supervised by Elise van den Hoven & Panos Markopoulos, was completed in May 2018. He continued his research on serendipitous reminiscing as a postdoctoral researcher. Currently, he a Lecturer with Design Next at UNSW.
Dr Wenn-Chieh (Joe) Tsai
Research Fellow – UTS
Wenn-Chieh (Joe) Tsai has a background in interaction design (PhD), medical informatics (M.S.) and occupational therapy (B.S.). He received his PhD in computer science from the Graduate Institute of Networking and Multimedia, National Taiwan University. His research interests lie in the unbalanced relationship between people and their everyday technologies, in particular, remembering experiences and digital memories. He is invested in interaction design encouraging individuals to reflect and regain responsibility in their digital lives. During his postdoctoral research with MM from 2015 to 2017, Joe was a Visiting Fellow at the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building and later the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology of the University of Technology Sydney. He was the recipient of 2015 Postdoctoral Research Abroad Program funding from the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan and 2016 Endeavour Research Fellowship from the Department of Education and Training of Australia. Joe is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the National Taiwan University IoX Center.
Dr Xiaomei He
Visiting Fellow – UTS
uts.edu.au/staff/xiaomei.he
Xiaomei He studied mechanical design and theory (Ph.D. and M.S.) and industrial design (B.A.) in China University of Mining and Technology. She is currently an associate professor in the Department of Industrial Design, the School of Art and design of China University of Mining and Technology. Her research interests lie in several areas of the fields of ergonomics, machinery dynamic design and interaction design. Now she is mainly invested in the emotional design and the design of media products. Xiaomei He is a Visiting Fellow at the Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building of the University of Technology, Sydney. She spent one year in the Materialising Memories research programme, starting in August 2015. She was a recipient of the Overseas Training Program funding by CUMT, PR China.
Dr Roger Dunston
Academic advisor – UTS
uts.edu.au/staff/roger.dunston
Roger Dunston joined the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) in early 2007. He is a senior health services manager, educator and health policy analyst with over 30 years of experience within the health sector. Dr Dunston is primarily located as part of the Centre for Research and Learning in Change and will focus on the development of new forms of collaboration - engagement, research and educational development - between FASS/UTS and the health sector. This work builds on already existing FASS research strengths. His appointment to FASS is a response to a global policy and practice momentum that is reshaping the role of the higher education sector and, in particular, its relationship to industry and civil society.
Dr. ir. Mendel Broekhuijsen
PhD student – TU/e & UTS
mendeldesign.nl
Mendel Broekhuijsen has a background in Industrial Design, with both Bachelor and Master degrees obtained from Eindhoven University of Technology. His graduation project about the Future of Nostalgia was concluded with the design of an application that enables people to create a personal collection of memory-inducing music. He continued to work on his passion for the value of digital media in his PhD project, supervised by Elise van den Hoven & Panos Markopoulos, which he completed with his defence on October 22, 2018. Since February 2018 he works as Senior Innovation Engineer at Qwiek.
Dr Annemarie Zijlema
PhD student – UTS & TU/e
Annemarie Zijlema obtained her PhD degree with the Materialising Memories program in October 2018, being supervised by Prof. Elise van den Hoven and Prof. Berry Eggen. She has a strong interest in cognitive processes in relation to external cues, such as objects in the home, in the public space, or information on the web. She holds an International Master degree in Library and Information Science from the Royal School of Library and Information Science in Copenhagen (now Copenhagen University) and obtained her bachelor degree in Information Services and Management from the Hanze University of Applied Sciences Groningen. Besides her PhD, she was involved in education at UTS as a tutor, lecturer, and curriculum developer, and participated in dementia research as research assistant with Dr. Gail Kenning. Her PhD research focused on personal possessions as cues for autobiographical remembering (more information can be found on the projects page).
Dr Ine Mols
PhD student – TU/e & UTS
Ine Mols studied Industrial Design at the Eindhoven University of Technology, where she obtained both her Bachelor and Master degree. Her research project “Dear Diary” sparked her interest in designing for behavior change and the subject of everyday remembering. During her graduation project she explored designing for complex situations in “Educational Interaction”. The project focussed on stimulating the use of visual summaries based on photos in secondary schools, with the aim to create more varied and interactive lessons. In August 2013, she continued her path at the TU/e by joining the Materialising Memories PhD-team. Supervised by Elise van den Hoven & Berry Eggen.
Dr Daniel Orth
PhD student – UTS
http://danielorthdesign.com
Daniel Orth obtained his PhD within the Materialising Memories program in August 2019 with Prof. Elise van den Hoven and Dr. Clementine Thurgood as his supervisors. He previously studied Industrial Design at the University of Technology, Sydney where he obtained his Bachelor degree in 2013. His work within the Materialising Memories team investigated how designers can create products with personal meaning for their users.
Daniel Herron
PhD student – Dundee & UTS
danielherron.co.uk
Daniel Herron obtained his bachelor's degree in Applied Computing at the University of Dundee in 2012. Since then he has worked as part of a multi-disciplinary HCI focused research team at the School of Computing within Dundee University, examining how technology can improve the communication and healthcare prospects of people with severe physical and intellectual disabilities. In November 2014 he started his joint PhD at DJCAD, University of Dundee, in conjunction with the Materialising Memories project at the University of Technology, Sydney, investigating how technology can support individuals during breakup, separation and divorce with particular emphasis on the curation of digital memories. Supervised by Wendy Moncur & Elise van den Hoven.
Ashlyn Lee
PhD student – UTS
Ashlyn completed her Bachelor degree of Industrial Design (Hons) in 2013 with the University of Technology, Sydney. Her honours project focused on childhood development and she looked into storytelling, technology, and the importance of physical parent-child interaction during a child's upbringing. In September 2016, Ashlyn joined the Materialising Memories project under the co-supervision of Elise van den Hoven and Tuck Wah Leong. Her research focused on the effect of music on memory in the context of interaction design.
Nataliya Tarbeeva
PhD student – UTS
With a background in language, cognitive psychology, and interactive museum exhibits, Nataliya continues her interest in the experiential side of museum visits. Her research focuses on personal experience and the role that personal memories play when people visit a museum. She is supervised by Elise van den Hoven and Andrew Johnston.
Jan Zekveld
Master by Research student – TU/e
Jan obtained his Bachelor degree in Industrial Design and subsequently started his Masters in Industrial Design, both at the Eindhoven University of Technology. He is interested in physical and tangible product interaction, and especially in how products should communicate with the user to facilitate this interaction successfully. For his Master Graduation Project, Jan worked on a tool that enables people to create prospective memory cues to help them remember their future intentions. His aim was to design this so that it does remind people of their future intention but without having the obtrusive characteristics of current electronic reminders and notifications. He was supervised by Saskia Bakker & Elise van den Hoven.
Xenia Zürn
Master by Research student – TU/e & UTS
Xenia obtained her Bachelor of Industrial Design at Eindhoven University of Technology. She pursued her Master at the same department. For her second, research-oriented semester Xenia worked at UTS in Sydney to study how the user experience of casual photo curation could be improved.
Ward de Groot
Master by Research student – TU/e & UTS
http://warddegroot.nl
Ward is currently pursuing a Master degree in Industrial Design after completing the Bachelor program at the Eindhoven University of Technology. As preparation for his graduation project, he is doing a research semester at the University of Technology Sydney. He is keen to explore the dementia care space by design research projects.
Leslie McCawley
Bachelor student – UTS
Bachelor of Science, University of San Francisco, 1981.Master of Public Health, University of Otago, New Zealand, 1996.