Short film screening and panel discussion: Pin… “Mica scemo!”
The protagonist of the short, Pin, interpreted by Mingo De Pasquale, is an adult with autism, an extreme and delicate character, who opens the doors of his world with simplicity.
Alessandro Melis, will talk about an innovative and unique project, designed by his studio Heliopolis 21: the Stella Maris hospital in Pisa, Italy, exclusively intended for the treatment of neuropsychiatric pathologies of the developmental age.
Athina Papadopoulous, PhD. MIT, is an expert in health and Design. In her researches, on inclusive design and affective computing, she is currently exploring therapeutic applications for Autism.
Alessandro Melis is the inaugural IDC Foundation Endowed Chair and a professor in the School of Architecture and Design. In 2021, he was the curator of the Italian Pavilion at La Biennale di Venezia. Alessandro has been nominated Ambassador of Italian Design (ADI – Italian Ministry of External Affairs) in 2021 (Paris) and 2022 (New York and Washington). In 1996, he founded Heliopolis 21, a multi-awarded architecture practice based in Italy, Germany, and the UK. The SR1938 Institute of the University of Pisa, the Stella Maris Hospital, and the Auditorium of Sant’Anna, inaugurated by the president of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, are acknowledged both in scholar publications and in popular magazines as examples of excellence in sustainable design. The relevance of his contribution to research is evidenced by 200+ publications, by as many citations in popular publications, and by conferences at institutions such as the University of Cambridge, MoMA, China Academy of Art, and TEDx. Recent monographs on his work include “Alessandro Melis. Utopic Real World, Invention Drawings,” published by D Editore, and “Heliopolis 21,” published by Skira Editore.
Athina Papadopoulou, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Architecture, Health, and Design at New York Institute of Technology. Athina’s recent research focuses on programmable material environments that enhance health and well-being through sensory interaction. In her work, she utilizes various aspects of computing—digital, physical, material, and affective—to create augmented perceptual and human-material interaction systems. Athina received a Masters of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Design Computation with a minor in Human-Computer Interaction from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she was a Presidential, a Vergottis, and a Leon Hyzen Fellow, in addition to being a researcher at the MIT Computational Making Group, and the MIT Self-Assembly Lab. Before receiving her Ph.D. and M.S. from MIT, Athina received a Diploma in Architecture Engineering and a Postgraduate Master’s in Design Culture from the National Technical University of Athens, Greece. She is a registered architect in Greece, where she worked at her own and other firms before focusing her career on design and technology research. Prior to teaching at New York Tech, Athina taught courses at MIT, at Boston Architectural College, and Wentworth Institute of Technology. Athina’s research has been published in science and design journals including Nature, Cognitive Science, and Architectural Design, as well as computation and human-computer interaction conferences.
Organized by the IIC-NY in collaboration with The Goodwill People.
