Abbie Galvin

Principal, BVN
Australia

Abbie Galvin is a Principal of BVN, one of Australia’s largest and most highly acclaimed architectural practices. With a 90 year history and an international reputation for design leadership and innovation, BVN is widely acknowledged for award-winning design across a broad and diverse portfolio in Australia and overseas.

Abbie has worked for over 25 years on public, educational, health, research and workplace projects that have been highly awarded, published and recognised internationally for bringing fresh approaches to common project types.

Aric Chen

Lead Curator, Design and Architecture at M+
Hong Kong

Aric Chen is Lead Curator for Design and Architecture at M+, the new museum of visual culture currently under construction in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District. Previously, he served as Creative Director of Beijing Design Week, helping to oversee the successful launch of that event in 2011 and 2012.

Prior to moving to Beijing, Chen was an independent curator, critic, and journalist based in New York, organizing exhibitions and projects at the Design Museum Holon, Design Miami/Basel, the Saint-Etienne International Design Biennale, Center for Architecture (New York), and ExperimentaDesign Amsterdam, among others. He is the author of Brazil Modern (Monacelli, 2016), and has been a frequent contributor to publications including The New York Times, Metropolis, Architectural Record, and PIN-UP.

Chan Ee Mun

Architect. WOHA
Singapore

Ee Mun is senior associate at WOHA, a regional design practice based in Singapore. He has been associated with WOHA since 2002 as project leader for key residential, commercial, conservation, institutional and hospitality projects.

Having been acknowledged by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Singapore as a leading young architect in “20 under 45: The Next Generation”, Ee Mun is helping shape Singapore’s urbanscape and policy for the future on the invitation of Singapore’s statutory boards. He is engaged in academia as a visiting design tutor, lecturer and external examiner at local art and architectural institutions such as the National University of Singapore, Singapore University of Technology and Design and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts.

Eleena Jamil

Principal, Eleena Jamil Architect
Malaysia

Eleena Jamil trained as an architect at the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University where she went on to complete her MPhil and PhD degrees. After working as an architect in the UK with Capita and Malaysia with Ken Yeang and Hijjas Kasturi, Eleena established her practice Eleena Jamil Architect (EJA) in 2005.

he has served as an External Examiner to various architecture schools and regularly contributes to international conferences to talk about architecture and urban design. Projects developed by EJA such as the Bamboo Playhouse, Sepang House and the Millennium School have been widely published in international press and received international recognition from the Leaf Awards, World Architecture Festival Awards and the Plan Awards. Recently, EJA was shortlisted for Best Firm Award 2017 for Sustainable Architecture by the American Architecture Prize

James Calder

Founder, Calder Consultants
Australia

James is a practitioner, facilitator, author and part-time educator interested in all facets of the strategy, design and use of the workplace.

He has extensive experience in North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific with the world’s pre-eminent organisations across most business sectors including extensive experience with the public sector. James has developed workplace strategies for lawyers, accountants, management consultants, media and technology organisations, investment banks, retail banks, government departments and agencies and universities. He also works for developers and owners of real estate to design the next generation of buildings for the information age.

Jan Utzon

Architect. Utzon Architects
Denmark

Being the son of Opera House designer Jørn Utzon, it’s no surprise that Jan Utzon grew up with architecture as the main theme of influence during his childhood. Having studied architecture in both Sydney and Copenhagen, Jan graduated in 1970 and begun what would come to be a legendary architecture career in Denmark and aborad.

After founding Utzon Architects with his father, Jan and the firm went on to win a competition to design the new National Assembly Complex in Kuwait. Never one to rest, during a brief pause in the development of this project, Jan went on to work in Honolulu, and become registered as an architect in Hawaii.

From 1976 Jan and Utzon Architects have been involved in a wide variety works in Denmark, including the Paustian House in Copenhagen and the Skagen Odde Nature Centre in the north of Jutland, as well as numerous international projects.

Jan’s passion for great design extends to a passion for making design for the better of the world, particularly in developing countries. Working for the Tvind concern, Jan designed the Shamva in Zimbabwe, the headquarters for the Humana People to People organisation, and the training and conference centre at San Juan de las Pulgas near Ensenada in Mexico.

Joshua Comaroff

Design Consultant, Lekker Architects
Singapore

Joshua Comaroff is a design consultant at Singapore-based firm Lekker Architects. He was born in Manchester and raised in Chicago. Josh studied literature and creative writing at Amherst College before joining the Master of Architecture and Master of Landscape Architecture programmes at Harvard University Graduate School of Design, where he worked as part of Rem Koolhaas’ Harvard Project on the City. Together with his partner, Ong Ker-Shing, Josh works across a broad creative spectrum with a special emphasis on design for the arts, for children, and for seniors.

Luke Pearson and Tom Lloyd

Founders, PearsonLloyd
United Kingdom

PearsonLloyd is a London based design studio founded by Luke Pearson and Tom Lloyd in 1997.

Luke and Tom were awarded the distinction of Royal Designers for Industry by The Royal Society of Arts in 2008 and in August 2012 were named in the top 50 designers ‘Shaping the Future’ by Fast-Co Magazine in New York. They have lectured for a number of years at ECAL and the RCA and regularly talk at international platforms.

The studio supports a collaborative approach in its work that embraces the restrictions imposed by product type, function, material, process, market, the client and every other element that defines a brief.

The studio works across the aviation, workplace, urban design and healthcare sectors with a goal to identify and respond to the shifting patterns of behaviour in contemporary life. Recent projects include the design of the Economy Class Cabin of Lufthansa’s new A350 fleet, a new global guest room for Intercontinental Hotel Group, ‘A Better A&E’ project for the Department of Health, Totem Intelligent Waste programme for Joseph Joseph & furniture projects for brands including Teknion, Bene, Steelcase, Walter Knoll, Alias, Senator and PoltonaFrau.

Most recently, PearsonLloyd was announced as a key member of Virgin Voyages ‘Creative Collective’, a small selection of design firms envisioning Virgin’s first cruise ship, scheduled to be launched in 2020.

Luke Yeung

Principal, Architectkidd
Thailand

Luke Yeung (1973-) leads Architectkidd along with Udomsak Komonvilas and Jariyawadee Lekawatana. Based in Bangkok, Thailand, Architectkidd’s designs make use of innovative tools that are sensitively applied to local materials and construction techniques. This combination leads to architectural projects that are bold and inventive but also closely connected with the local conditions of South East Asia.

Working within the context of South East Asia’s growing cities, Architectkidd is known for articulating materiality as a way to bring humanistic and social qualities into the built environment. While each project differs in their relationships with their surroundings, Architectkidd’s designs are characterized as being varied and dynamic, often with clearly articulated spaces and structures juxtaposed with unusual finishes and surfaces.

Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu

Foundering Partners. Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
China

Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu are the Founding Partners of Neri&Hu Design and Research Office, an inter-disciplinary international architectural design practice based in Shanghai, China, with an additional office in London, UK. Neri&Hu are named Maison&Objet Asia Designers of The Year 2015 and Wallpaper* Designer of The Year 2014. In 2013, they were inducted into the U.S. Interior Design Hall of Fame. Their practice was the 2011 INSIDE Festival Overall Winner, won AR Awards for Emerging Architecture in 2010 by Architectural Review and one of the Design Vanguards in 2009 by Architectural Record.

Other than architectural professionals, Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu have been actively involved in teaching and research. They have been invited to speak, exhibit and judge for many prestigious events and programs all over the world.

Lyndon Neri and Rossana are also founders of Design Republic, a modern design platform incorporating retail concept, design/ cultural exhibitions and educational events.

Besides award-winning architecture and interiors, Neri&Hu have designed products for brands including Classicon, Fritz Hansen, Gandia Blasco, JIA, LEMA, MOOOI, Nanimarquina, Parachilna, Poltrona Frau S.p.A., Porro, Stellar Works, Wallpaper* Handmade, Meritalia, BD Barcelona Design, neri&hu, among many others. In 2015, Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu were appointed Creative Directors of Stellar Works.

Mr. Neri received his Master of Architecture at Harvard University and his Bachelor of Architecture at UC Berkeley. Ms. Hu received her Master of Architecture and Urban Planning at Princeton University and her Bachelor of Arts in Architecture at UC Berkeley.

Paul McGillick

Writer, Editor, Public Speaker. McGillick Consulting
Australia

Dr Paul McGillick is a prominent, Sydney-based writer and editor, specialising in the fields of architecture, art and design.

In a past life, Paul served as Editorial Director at Indesign Media for over a decade. He is the author of a number of architecture and design books, has edited and contributed to numerous other books and written innumerable essays and articles. He has contributed to leading newspapers such as the Australian Financial Review, and magazines both in Australia and Internationally, as well as having carved a career in radio and TV art, drama, and documentaries.

Paul has also worked in the area of corporate communications, both through his own consultancy and with management training companies, using his background as a trained linguist. As an applied linguist, he taught and researched for almost twenty years at the University of Sydney.

Raj Nandan

Founder & CEO. Indesign Media
Singapore/Australia

Rajesh Nandan is the Founder, Publisher and Chief Executive Officer of the design industry’s premier regional media house, Indesign Media Asia Pacific. After acquiring his first magazine at the age of 22 in 1993, Raj continued to launch a suite of magazine titles throughout the 90s which would become the foundation for his boutique publishing house in 2000 under the flagship title, Indesign. In 2010, the company moved further throughout Asia with digital and print titles in Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong – including welcoming India to the fold in the very near future. The root of his success lies in Raj being a very early proponent of the potential for digital platforms to support our region’s creative talent

Shashi Caan

Founding Partner, SC COLLECTIVE
United States of America/United Kingdom

Shashi Caan is a distinguished thought leader for architectural design internationally. As a practitioner, design futurist, educator and author, her dedication to furthering human betterment through and by design is reflected in her 25-year design career. She was formerly Associate Partner and Design Director with Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, in New York. Since 2002, she has led THE COLLECTIVE, the innovatively structured firm which she cofounded. Ms. Caan was the U.S. Designer of the Year (2004), granted the Golden Seat Architectural Master Award of China (2012), and appointed the JDP Design Ambassador to Japan (2013).

She has been bestowed honorary fellowships in the UK, Australia and the US and conferred an honorary doctorate from the NY School of Interior Design. In addition, Ms. Caan is a two-term President and Fellow of the International Federation of Interior Architects/ Designers (IFI). Her seminal book, Rethinking Design and Interiors: Human Beings in the Built Environment, has been translated into multiple languages.

Stephen Burks

Designer. Stephen Burks Man Made
United States of America

Stephen Burks is both a traveler and a designer.

He believes in a pluralistic vision of design that is inclusive of all cultural perspectives.

For his socially-conscious efforts, he has been called a design activist and his ongoing Man Made project bridges the gap between authentic developing world production, industrial manufacturing and contemporary design.

Independently and through association with the non-profits Aid To Artisans, Artesanias de Colombia, the Clinton Global Initiative, Design Network Africa and the Nature Conservancy, Stephen has worked as a product development consultant with hundreds of artisans in Australia, Colombia, France, Germany, Ghana, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, the Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Spain and South Africa.

Industrially, he has been commissioned by many of the world’s leading design-driven manufacturers to develop lifestyle collections that engage hand production as a strategy for innovation for mass-market and luxury brands worldwide.

Stephen is a recipient of the Illinois Institute of Technology Alumni Professional Achievement Award, the Brooklyn Museum Modernism Young Designer Award, the A&W, Architektur & Wohnen Audi Mentor Prize and the 2008 United States Artists Architecture & Design Target Fellowship Grant, as well as the 2015 Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt National Design Award in Product Design.

William Smart

Founder, Smart Design Studio
Australia

William Smart is the founder and leader of Smart Design Studio, an architecture studio that channels a sense of pure modernism for the 21st century. Leading a team of over 35, Smart’s team designs with rigour and imbues meaning into all of their projects. Believing that each new work is a chance for new opportunities, Smart harnesses the personalities and requirements of clients to achieve a bespoke and catered result. Smart’s career has spanned across architecture and interiors of many forms, always with respect to the environment in which a project sits.