Carlo Ratti

Founding Partner / Chairman

An architect and engineer by training, Carlo teaches at MIT, where he directs the Senseable City Lab, and is a founding partner of the international design and innovation office Carlo Ratti Associati. He graduated from the Politecnico di Torino and the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris, later earning his MPhil and PhD at the University of Cambridge, UK. In the last decade, Carlo has given talks around the world on the theme of Smart Cities, while his work has been exhibited in international venues including the Venice Biennale, New York’s MoMA, London’s Science Museum and Barcelona’s Design Museum. Two of his projects – the Digital Water Pavilion and the Copenhagen Wheel – were hailed by Time Magazine as “Best Inventions of the Year.” He has been included in Blueprint Magazine’s “25 People who will Change the World of Design” and in Wired Magazine’s “Smart List: 50 people who will change the world.” He was curator for the Future Food District at Expo Milano 2015, and is currently serving as co-chair of the World Economic Forum Global Council on the Future of Cities and Urbanization. Full CV here.

Antonio Atripaldi

Project Manager / Senior Architect

Graduated in Architecture from the Università degli Studi Roma Tre in 2009, Antonio also has a Post-Graduate “Master in Advanced Architecture” from the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya, Barcelona. Between 2006 and 2010 he worked as a trainee in the cabinet of Prof. Maurizion Marcelloni in Rome, mainly in the field of architectural and urban planning. In 2011 he was awarded a scholarship to work with the FabLab of Barcelona and was responsible for organizing and running the digital fabrication facilities. He joined CRA in October 2006.

Daniele Belleri

Head of Communications / Editor

Daniele Belleri is a design journalist and communication consultant, interested in multidisciplinary readings and connections. As a writer, he has had his work appear on publications including Wired Italia, Domus, Corriere della Sera, La Stampa, IL Magazine (IT), Volume (NL), Afisha (RU), CoBo social (HK). He has been teaching at Milan’s NABA academy and he is currently a course curator at Moscow’s Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design, where he also graduated. From 2012 to 2016 he was a partner of Granger Press, a London-based strategic design agency whose list of clients includes cultural organisations and businesses such as the Institute of Russian Realist Art, Triennale Design Museum, Pandora, Santa&Cole. Daniele joined CRA in 2016 as head of communications and editor. He regularly co-writes articles and essays with Carlo Ratti for international media and institutions.

Alberto Benetti

Architect

Alberto graduated in Architecture and Building Engineering from the University of Trento in 2017 with a focus on the potential of new technologies and open-source strategies in the urban context. His master thesis “HE.RE. – a kit for temporary reactivation of urban vacancies,” developed a prototype of a software to map underused buildings by using heterogeneous sets of data to direct the installation of a network of sensing urban devices able to temporarily reactivate these buildings by creating new active public spaces for open-source strategies. Since 2016, his research has been awarded by the IEEE Smart Cities Initiative and has been presented most recently – among other occasions – at the IAAC Responsive Cities Symposium in Barcelona. After having attended the first semester of the Mario Cucinella’s School of Sustainability, he joined CRA in January 2018.

Chiara Borghi

Architect

Chiara graduated with honors in Architecture for Sustainability at the Politecnico di Torino, with the thesis “Save/safe Murazzi. A project for urban security: social sustainability and light.” She has also graduated from programs in Trieste and Madrid, and she studied CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) in Copenhagen. She is interested in the social environment and the dynamics of social participation; she works at Ecoborgo Campidoglio in Turin organizing occasions of interaction. She’s co-founder of the collective de:forma which actively trains architectural students in creating DIY experimental projects. She joined CRA in November 2015.

Andrea Cassi

Project Manager / Senior Architect

Andrea graduated in Architecture from the Politecnico di Torino with a thesis on the role of digital technologies in the contemporary city, developed at the Senseable City Lab at MIT. In 2008, his work with Weekend In A Morning, “The tree sap, the divers and the silence,” was exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale. In 2010, with Weekend In a Morning, he won the international competition “Rome City Vision.” He writes periodically for the architecture magazine “City Vision Mag” and is a teaching assistant for the Architecture Design workshop at the Politecnico di Torino and Politecnico di Milano. He has been collaborating with CRA since 2009.

Roberta Chiummarulo

Front Office Assistant

Roberta was born in Turin in 1997, and obtained a diploma in Administration, Finance and Marketing at the Germano Sommeiller Commercial and Technical Institute in 2016. Previously she followed a course in “Economics and Growth” at Turin’s SAA-School of Management. At the same time, she cultivated a personal interest for interior design – in particular vintage design. After several jobs over the previous years, in September 2016 she joined CRA’s administration team – an opportunity not to be missed, for her studies and her passions.

Giovanni De Niederhäusern

CEO

Giovanni graduated in engineering and architecture in 2008, having collaborated with a number of Italian architectural practices since 2006, including Iosa Ghini Associati in Bologna. In 2009, he joined the MIT Senseable City Laboratory as Research Affiliate. Since 2009, he has been collaborating with CRA as a designer and project manager. In 2014, he earned an MBA from LUISS Business School in Rome. He has also been a lecturer at Italian universities, such as the Politecnico di Torino and LUNA Bologna. In 2017, he became CEO at CRA – in charge of opening CRA’s new office in the United States.

Gary Di Silvio

Head of 3D Visualization team

Gary graduated in Architecture at the University of Venice IUAV in 2012, focusing on environmental sustainability. He is currently studying for a Master in Digital Architecture at the same university, where he has been able to deepen his understanding and knowledge with regards to new digital tools for architectural visualization, parametric modeling and rapid prototyping. He joined CRA in May 2013 as a CG Artist.

Melanie Erspamer

Communication intern

Melanie holds a MA in Philosophy and English Literature from the University of Edinburgh. She graduated with first class honours with a thesis on the way the geography of American suburbia influences American literature set there. She has written for various publications, including The Culture Trip, The Literary Review and Cleaver Magazine, having also served as editorial intern for the latter two. In addition, she has interned with Luath Press, a publishing house in Edinburgh, and Spazio Cabinet and Studiolo, art galleries in Milan. She is a native English speaker who is fluent in Italian and Spanish. She joined CRA in July 2018.

Pietro Franceschini

Architect

Pietro was educated in Italy, Portugal and the United States. He received his Bachelor of Architecture cum laude from the Università degli Studi di Firenze and his Master of Architecture with first class honors from the Pratt Institute. He has collaborated with various architecture studios including Leeser Architecture in Brooklyn, Claudio Nardi in Florence and Laisné Roussel in Paris. He has been a teaching assistant at the Department of Architecture at the Università degli Studi di Firenze in 2015 and a guest critic at the Pratt Institute GAUD in 2017. He is fascinated by the brand-new aesthetics of the virtual world. In a time when the main focus of architecture is the city, he likes to investigate recent rural realities such as data centers, distribution hubs and industrial plants. Pietro joined CRA in 2018.

Aunie Frisch

Senior Interaction Designer

Hailing from New York City, Aunie is a multi-disciplinary designer who brings with her over 10+ years of experience working for multi-national companies in the advertising, fashion, food-tech and music sectors. Aunie holds a BFA with honors in Graphic and Web Design from Marywood University as well as a Master of Science for Visual and Web Design from Scuola Politecnica di Design, in Milan. As the 1st place recipient of the Celly Design Award, her work has been recently showcased on Via Dante during Milano Fuorisalone. Aunie brings a multi-sensorial approach to her design-thinking as a result of her extensive studies in the areas of dance, piano, 5-piece drums, sculpture and painting. Aunie joined CRA in September 2017.

Andrea Galli

Senior Engineer / HR Coordinator

Andrea is an architectural engineer graduated in Engineering and Architecture (MSc) from the Politecnico di Torino. His graduation thesis gathers all his research, initiated after an inspiring work experience in London at the Urban Future Organization, on a computational approach to architectural design and urban planning. He has presented his work as visiting lecturer at the University of Bergamo, University of Pescara and Politecnico di Torino. His research has been published by IaaC Bits, Urbanistica Informazione and Osservatorio Nazionale Smart City. In 2014 he also contributed to the bestseller book “AAD Algorithms-Aided Design” by Arturo Tedeschi. In recent years his project Mantica, awarded by CityVision Mag, has been exhibited in Rome, Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles and New York. Other awarded projects are “So.Ma” for the digital crafting competition Reshape and “Responsive Environment” for the CAME Design Award. To push his interest in digital technologies beyond the architectural field, in 2014 he co-founded in Sicily the digital startup “SkilledApp,” later awarded and supported by Telecom Italia and the European projects FIWARE and Fed4fire.

Luca Giacolini

Interaction Designer

Luca is an interaction designer looking at the intersection of technology and people through the creation of physical prototypes. He graduated from the Interactive Architecture Lab, Bartlett School of Architecture, with a speculative Master thesis on the interaction between humans and industrial robots in a domestic scenario. Prior to London, Luca studied Industrial Design at Eindhoven University of Technology, in the Netherlands, where he graduated cum laude in 2015, defending a thesis on wearable 3-dimensional displays. Besides that, Luca spent a semester abroad at CMU School of Design, US, and obtained the Fab Academy diploma at Fab Lab Toscana on advanced digital manufacturing techniques. Among other venues, his work has been exhibited at Beijing Design Week, Dutch Design Week, Accenture Digital HPD Conference and human-computer interaction conferences like NIME, ECCE and ACHI. Luca jumped on board at CRA in November 2017.

Serena Giardina

Junior Architect

Serena completed her Master in Architecture Construction City at the Politecnico di Torino in February 2018. Recently she spent three months in Tokyo as a Visiting Research Student at Keio University to develop a thesis project about the role of contemporary art in Japan and how it can be linked with architecture to renew the cultural context of cities in the post-industrial period. While studying, she participated in several design competitions and workshops. Her team won the last edition of TTT International Workshop by designing a modular kitchen, whose prototype was realized in scale 1:1 at FABLAB Torino. Serena joined CRA in October 2017.

Gerolamo Gnecchi Ruscone

Architect

Gerolamo is part of the first group of students that  graduated from the Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture in January 2016. His thesis “The Invisibles and The Fortress” investigates the role of architecture in recording, preserving and protecting information from cultures that are disappearing due to violent conflicts, territorial occupations and global warming with the creation of a new data center. He then worked between Paris and Milan as Junior Architect for Caruso Torricella Architetti following an industrial complex in the north of France, and continued his own research by working on art installations combining architecture and our virtual environment. He joined CRA in 2017 as Architect.

Valentina Grasso

Senior Architect

Valentina graduated with honors from the Faculty of Architecture of Reggio Calabria, with a thesis on the regeneration of the harbor basin of Ischia, which was awarded first prize for “Provocation” at IsAM, 2012 (Ischia). For several years she has been a teaching assistant for various studios on architecture and urban design, and has participated in numerous workshops as well as national and international competitions. In 2012, she worked as a researcher at I2a, the International Institute of Architecture (Vico Morcote, Switzerland), where she co-authored “Beyond Urbanization,” a publication on contemporary urban conditions and inter-modal nodes in the Lugano area. She joined CRA in April 2013.

Emma Greer

Project Manager / Senior Architect

Emma holds a Professional Master in Architecture and Post-Professional Master in Urban Design from McGill University. She has worked throughout Canada as well as in the US, Italy and the UK. Her background in architecture and urban design was geared towards applied research, creative design methodologies and “big picture” concepts. Emma joined CRA in 2014 to fulfill the role of architect and PA manager of Carlo Ratti’s agenda and speaking engagements.

Rui Guan

Architect

Rui received a B.arch with honors from Southeast University and a Post-professional master’s degree in Advanced Architectural Design from Columbia University in New York City. He was immediately recruited as a teaching associate in Architecture, Planning and Preservation at Columbia’s GSAPP, teaching Advanced Architecture Studios with Professor Andrés Jaque. Prior to joining CRA, he worked and studied in several leading architectural institutions including Mitsubishi Estate Company in Tokyo, ZAO/standardarchitecture in Beijing, New Practice in New York and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He is a LEED Green Associate. Rui joined CRA in October 2017.

Ben Johnson

Junior Architect

Ben completed his five-year Bachelor of Architecture degree in 2017 at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, with a thesis focusing on harvesting and recycling plastics from the oceans. In the Spring of 2014, he entered the NKA Mud House Design Competition. His project was nominated to be built in Ghana and was published in Cal Poly’s CAED Architecture Department magazine ADD_15: Architecture, Design and Discourse. In the autumn of 2014, he collaborated with the Urban Informatics team at Queensland University of Technology to develop initial concepts for their InstaBooth project. From June 2015 to June 2016, Ben was able to study abroad in Ticino and Rome, focusing on historical rehabilitation, and was accepted to volunteer at the Media Architecture Biennale (MAB16) in Sydney. By the Summer of 2017, he worked for iFixit where he learned to repair, among many things, Apple products. Ben joined CRA in October 2017.

Oliver Kazimir

Junior Architect

Oliver graduated with Bachelor degree in Architecture and Urban Planning in Brno University of Technology (Czech Republic), then pursuing his MA program between Brno and KU Leuven in Brussels. He has gained professional experience by working in international architectural studios in Brno and London. He is particularly interested in studying the impact of global environmental and social issues on the contemporary city. In addition to this, Oliver is passionated about drawing, collage and photography techniques in abstract visual art. He briefly joined the studio in June 2016 for an internship and then he was back in September 2018 as junior architect.

Stephanie Kyuyoung Lee

Junior Architect

Stephanie holds a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and Studio Art with distinction from Wesleyan University. She completed her M.Arch from Rice University where she was awarded the Morris R. Pitman Fellowship, Margaret Everson-Fossi Award, Mary Ellen Hale Lovett Fellowship and Brett Michael Detamore Research Grant for Intellectual Studies. She gained professional experience from Shigeru Ban Architects in Japan; OPEN Architecture in China; and managed exhibitions, and fabrication for the artist Lee Bul, among others. Her research centers in exploring the intersection of post-colonial anxiety, and utopian labor systems in the built/ non-built environment. This led to her graduate thesis “R-R’R” (2017), where she proposed a technoscientific prototype for cooperatives in factory farming. She has worked and lived throughout the United States as well as
Copenhagen, Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul and Paris before joining CRA in 2018.

Monika Löve

Senior Architect

Trained initially as an interior architect in Estonia and working on various projects through all stages of design and construction, Monika completed a Design Master in the Netherlands in 2008 before moving to the UK to work for the architectural company Slider Studio. In 2011, she graduated with distinction from the Centre for Research Architecture at Goldsmiths College, University of London, and continued her research at the Jan van Eyck Academie, a post-graduate research and production center, in 2012. Monika is interested in readings of contemporary political issues within a constructed, real or imaginary architecture.

Giulia Maccagli

Communication associate

Giulia is a journalist and communication associate with an international background. As a journalist, she has written for international and renowned newspapers, such as The Jordan Times, The Scotsman, The Evening News and other online publications. She holds an MA in Broadcast Journalism from Edinburgh Napier University and an MA in Economics and Law of the Middle East. Between 2014 and 2015 she worked as Marketing and Communications Manager for a solar consultancy company in Amman, Jordan. In 2016 she interned as a communication officer at the European Commission office in Scotland. Back in Italy she worked for a newspaper in Turin. She joined CRA in March 2017 as a communication associate.

Valentina Macchioni

Front Office Manager

Valentina graduated in Economics at the School of Management and Economics in Turin in 2014. While still at University she carried out a professional internship in several firms based in Turin to acquire first-hand experience in bookkeeping. Her main interest being the world of accounting, she keeps up-to-date with developments in fiscal regulation on a daily basis. She joined CRA in July 2018.

Francesca Marino

Junior Architect

Francesca graduated from the Politecnico di Milano in April, earning a master’s degree in Interior Design with a thesis about the redevelopment of the coast of Baleal, a Portuguese town, which she developed during her exchange at the Faculty of Architecture in Lisbon. She has participated in several international competitions and workshops, recently winning with her team the IAH special edition by Archistart with the project of an installation that will be built in order to improve the accessibility of the beaches in Lecce, Italy. She is particularly fond of contemporary art and exhibition design. Francesca joined CRA in June 2018.

Pasquale Milieri

Architect / 3D Artist

Pasquale graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Architecture and Construction Techniques from “La Sapienza” University of Rome. In 2016, he obtained a master’s degree cum laude in “Architecture construction and city” from the Politecnico di Torino, with a master’s thesis about the reconversion of an industrial building into residential care home for people who are not self-sufficient. His thesis was nominated among the best theses in Architecture for the year 2016 by the Young Talent Architecture Award (YTAA). In 2017, he was awarded the third prize for the international ideas competition: “L’Unione industriale si veste di nuovo, Torino.” Since 2011, Pasquale has been developing a deep interest in architectural visualization, experimenting with new approaches and different techniques with various 3D software and a variety of rendering engines. He joined CRA as 3D Artist in 2018.

Chiara Morandini

Senior Architect

Chiara graduated in Construction Engineering from the Politecnico di Torino. She won a MURST 2-year professional training scholarship on restoration, acoustics, lighting, architecture and design and construction management, mainly held at Borini Costruzioni spa, Politecnico di Torino and CNR ICITE. Chiara worked as Plans Coordinator for many building sites of Borini Costruzioni spa until 2003. She was Project Manager at Mediapolis Engineering srl, where she followed major projects such as shopping malls, residential buildings, schools and nursing homes. Chiara has coordinated several tenders and competitions. After being partner of CRA between 2003 and 2006, Chiara is now back at the studio to assist the design team.

Anna Morani

Architect

Anna is an architect from Milan, where she completed a master’s degree with honors in Architecture and Urban Planning. Her thesis examined the master plan dynamics of Glòries in Barcelona. She has done work experiences for design projects ranging from interior accessories for Almini’s boutique in Milan, to complex buildings like the Lavazza Headquarters in Turin. Over the last few years, she has concentrated on the infrastructure of developing cities; in particular, she worked on the construction phases of Doha’s Metro stations in Qatar. She joined CRA in July 2018.

Ariela Osuna

Business Development – Americas

Raised as a “border child,” Ariela Osuna grew up commuting between her home in Tijuana, Mexico and school in San Diego, CA. Ariela graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture and minors in both Art History and Urban Studies. Prior to joining CRA, Ariela worked on the Strategy and Research team at Diller Scofidio + Renfro, aiding the studio’s business development strategy and outreach efforts for projects across the globe. Ariela’s coursework and work experience have furthered her interest in the intersection of architecture, urbanism, and technology in the built environment. Ariela joined CRA in August 2018 as part of the Business Development team in New York.

Saverio Panata

Operations Director / Senior Architect

Saverio graduated with honors from the Università IUAV di Venezia with a thesis on sustainable growth scenarios for industrial areas. While at IUAV, he spent 6 months at SCI-Arc in Los Angeles with a FIPSE scholarship and a year at the TU Delft under the Erasmus program. From 2004 to 2006, he was project architect for Archea in Florence. With a Fulbright scholarship, Saverio moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he received a Master in Architecture at Harvard University GSD (Graduate School of Design); he was awarded the Faculty Design Award for significant design achievements. While in the United States, he worked for KSWA and the MIT Senseable City Lab. Saverio returned to IUAV where, in 2012, he completed a Ph.D. “Villard d’Honnecourt” with research on the possibilities of the “rural” in defining a state of “opposition” to the dominant urban paradigm. From 2008 to 2013, as founding partner of Spedstudio, he won several international design competitions such as Aalst masterplan (2012 – 1st prize); Casa della Memoria (2012 – 2nd prize); Albarola square (2010 – 1st prize) and Carso2014+ (2010 – shortlisted). Saverio joined CRA in 2014 as a senior project manager.

Marco Maria Pedrazzo

Business Development

Marco is a trained architect and licensed engineer, and holds an Ms in Strategic Design and Management from Parsons (NY), with a focus on computation in design. His defining projects in this emergent field span from humanitarian design (Open Source Emergency Shelter) to urban systems (Social Computation for Urban Mobility, with the MIT Senseable City Lab). Building on the experience matured at CRA during his 3 years as designer and project manager at the merger of design, spatial systems and dynamic technology integration, Marco has worked with a number of start-up firms, delivering a full spectrum of customer experience, in order to identify their strengths, create a compelling story and maximize the value delivered to clients. Marco graduated from the highly selective Alta Scuola Politecnica, and served as an active leader for the Design Studio, Technology Studio and thematic workshops in the Politecnico di Torino, where he is currently visiting researcher. In October 2016 he re-joined CRA as evangelist and business developer.

Jacopo Reale

Architect

Jacopo completed a double master’s degree program in Architecture at the Politecnico di Milano and Tongji University in Shanghai. His thesis “Reforming gated communities: Shanghai towards a productive megacity” proposes a new paradigm of development for the city of Shanghai, exploring the new opportunities introduced by the Fourth Industrial Revolution to the evolution of the global factory. After having worked for AllesWirdGut Architekten in Vienna and for David Chipperfield Architects in Shanghai, he joined CRA in 2017 as Architect.

Federico Riches

Architect

Federico is an architect graduated cum laude from TU Delft in January 2017 with a thesis exploring new industrial paradigms in response to current social, economic and technological disruptions. Through his Bachelor he developed a strong interest in modular architecture which he deepened in professional experiences at Tempohousing in Amsterdam in 2013 and LOT-EK in New York in 2014. While at TU Delft, Federico was a board member of BouT student association and worked as research assistant for the Urbanism department. He joined CRA in April 2017.

Juan Carlos Romero

Business Developer

Juan Carlos is an architect and MSc in Management in the Built Environment from TU Delft, where he graduated with a thesis on collaborative planning for urban regeneration projects in Latin America. Throughout his career he developed a strong interest on the way that people interact with each other and with the built environment, with explorations on different scales from interior design to urban planning. Previously, he studied architecture at Universidad de los Andes and worked with a number of design firms in his native Bogotá. He joined CRA in 2018 as Business Developer.

Nicola Scaramuzza

Architect

Nicola graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Venice’s Iuav in July 2014. He is currently finishing his studies for a master’s degree in Sustainable Architecture at the Politecnico di Torino with a thesis project about Tokyo’s 2020 Olympic stadium. He has participated in a number of international workshops and won the workshop “Intelligent Perth” about a concept masterplan of Midland, Australia. He is also an American football player and since 2015 has been part of the Italian national team.

James Schrader

Project Manager/Senior Architect

From 2014 to 2017, James worked for Only If, an innovative practice for architecture and urbanism in New York City. Previously, James spent a year in Moscow at the Strelka Institute’s research residency program, and also worked most notably on regional planning research for the Shrinking Cities Project in Berlin, a facade installation for the Shenzhen Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, and master plans for new districts in Los Angeles, New York, and Kuala Lumpur. He holds a Master of Architecture from Yale and a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Princeton. James joined Carlo Ratti’s New York office in 2018.

Ina Sefgjini

Junior Architect

Ina graduated with full marks with a Master degree in “Architecture, Construction and City” at Politecnico di Torino in July 2018. Her Master’s thesis “Enhancing the Rural” aimed to reinforce the existing Chinese rural fabric through a new urban design proposal to generate social and economic benefits for future inhabitants. Last year she joint EFFEKT in Copenhagen as a Junior Architect where she worked on several urban transformation projects in Denmark. She joined CRA in 2015 for an internship and then came back in October 2018 as a Junior Architect.

Greta Stefanova

Architect

Greta graduated with honors from the Politecnico di Milano in 2015 after an international exchange at the Technical University of Lisbon and a foundation year in the department of Interactive/ Media/ Design at the Royal Academy of Art, Netherlands. She has international working experience in Italy, Portugal, Germany and Finland, having participated in the development of a variety of residential, commercial and social environment improvement projects. Greta has a strong training in fine arts and has a background working on various UN projects. She joined the CRA team in November 2017.

Francesco Strocchio

Senior Architect

Francesco graduated from the Politecnico di Torino in 2010 with a Master thesis on informal settlements in Mumbai that was selected as one of the World’s Best Graduation Projects in Archiprix 2011. As an architect, Francesco has studied and worked in Turin, Turku (Finland), Madrid, Brussels, Boston and Mumbai developing an attentive attitude to multidisciplinary and dynamic environments. From 2010, Francesco worked with MARC Architetti Associati in Turin, taking part in the creative process of the design as well as coordinating the executive drawings and construction works. In 2011, within the project Situa.to/ Your city, he conceived and curated the projects “I muri di Mirafiori, Volodja” with Wu Ming 1 and “Cantiere Barca” with Raumlabor in Turin. Francesco joined CRA in November 2014.

Alessandro Tassinari

Architect

Alessandro graduated in Architecture at the University of Florence in 2016 with a thesis that explored the potential of robotic construction and 3D printing for architecture. He participated in different workshops about parametric computation, digital prototyping and robotic fabrication, in addition to being selected to take part in a research project in Shanghai in July 2015. He is co-founder of the most read Italian website about 3D printing – Stampa3d-forum.it – and he has worked as 3D printing instructor and consultant for professionals. Alessandro joined CRA in October 2016.

Giovanni Trogu

Junior Architect

Giovanni graduated cum laude in Architecture at the Politecnico di Milano in July 2017 with the thesis “Identity in the making: from conservation to transmission of local identity through architecture.” His research investigates how architectural identity is evolving with digital and parametric design tools and the consequences it has on social and cultural patterns. Giovanni has collaborated with the Urban Simulation Laboratory at the Politecnico di Milano, experimenting with dynamic VR experiences and techniques to support the design process. He has also worked as a teaching assistant and digital consultant for environmental analysis and parametric design at the 5th year design studio. After having worked as integrated project coordinator, he joined CRA in January 2018.

Matteo Zerbi

Senior Architect

Matteo is an architect and a graphic designer with experience in design, planning and research in different countries such as Lebanon, Argentina, India, Italy, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos and the United Kingdom. He holds an MSc in Architecture and Urban Planning and has collaborated with teams from different cultural and social backgrounds, such as Catalytic Action, empowering communities through strategic and innovative spacial interventions. Throughout his career, he has focused his personal interest and professional research on vernacular architecture, slum upgrading, landscape structures, art, graphics and participatory engagement. Matteo joined CRA in November 2017.

Gianluca Zimbardi

Architect / 3D Artist

Gianluca holds a degree in Architecture for Sustainable Projects from the Politecnico di Torino, with a thesis regarding the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition (with publication as meritorious argument). During his time at university, he joined a series of participatory planning workshops, including “Designing public spaces of interaction” and “Redevelopment of the area Ex-Macello in Moncalieri.” He has been a teaching assistant for the Architecture Design workshop at the Politecnico di Torino, and together with Professor Roberto Apostolo co-organized the “Metamorphosis art / architecture” international design workshop for students at the Castello di Rivoli Contemporary Art Museum. He is passionate about the world of architectural visualization at large: renders, graphics and animation. He joined CRA in September 2016.

WALTER NICOLINO

Walter graduated from the Politecnico di Torino with an urban design project that was awarded the Archiprix 2003’s Honourable Mention – World’s Best Graduation Projects. Often invited as a lecturer by various universities and cultural institutions, Walter is currently serving as adjunct professor at the University of Ferrara’s Department of Architecture, where he is coordinating, together with Gabriele Lelli and Gianluca Cristoforetti, the multidisciplinary research group Next City Lab. Walter practices in Turin in the fields of architecture and urban planning, and he is a board member of OII+, a cultural association promoting architecture through events, publications, lectures and workshops. After having contributed to the founding of the studio and playing an active role until 2014, Walter Nicolino now acts as an external consultant to CRA.

EDOARDO BOSIO

Edoardo, originally from the breathtaking hill town of Santo Stefano Belbo, is completing his bachelor’s degree in Engineering & Management with a focus on IT and ICT. After an experience in managing a family business in wine production, in October 2016 he decided to step up in the cocktail world by joining the Makr Shakr team as a trainee. Now supporting the management operations, he is eager to grow professionally, gaining an in-depth awareness of the work dynamics.

Alessandro Incisa

Alessandro graduated in Industrial Engineering (MSc. Honors) from the Politecnico di Torino and in Project Management (MSc. Distinction) from Queensland University of Technology, before beginning his career working in both China and the Middle East. He is actively involved in research, investigating the development of Lean Manufacturing across multiple sectors, and is currently collaborating with CRA as project manager in the design and realization of new products for the market. Passionate about exploring the world, Alessandro has an incessant curiosity for gaining new knowledge by combining different disciplines.

Alfredo Marinucci

Alfredo graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the Politecnico di Milano. He was involved in a research program there about high-efficiency vehicles (electric, solar and fuel cell powered). He has participated in numerous international competitions about fuel efficiency, and he and his team won awards and prizes about vehicle design, setting international and Italian records. Since 2011, he worked on some innovative business ideas and co-founded a startup company in the 3D printing industry. Alfredo has also collaborated with several companies as a freelance consultant, mostly working on mechanical design, product development, prototyping and composite materials. He loves outdoor sports and on-the-road adventures; he is an avid motorcyclist.

Lorenzo Risitano

Lorenzo graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Engineering and Management (Logistics and Production) in December 2013. His thesis explored a comparison between main production control systems: MRP Conwip and Kanban. Within the university context, he pursued several projects based on strategic analysis. Lorenzo has worked part-time supporting management activities in different firms both in Turin and Messina. He is currently working towards a Master of Science in Engineering and Management, and is highly interested in embracing new professional relationships and improving his competence through new experiences. His hobbies include travelling and discovering new cultures. Lorenzo joined the CRA office in October 2015.

EMANUELE ROSSETTI

Emanuele Rossetti (born 1969 in Turin, Italy) is an Italian engineer, educated at the Politecnico di Torino in Italy and the City of London Polytechnic in the UK. He holds a PhD in applied mechanics and has taught robotic mechanics at the Politecnico di Torino. A seasoned executive with experience and interest in high growth businesses, Emanuele has a strong track record in developing, structuring and executing big projects in public organizations (he was head of the Overlay department for the Torino Organizing Committee for the XX Winter Olympic Games, from the bidding process in 2001 to closing ceremony in 2006) as well as in private companies (he was CEO of Nussli Italia, from the foundation of the company in 2007 to securing and managing large construction projects for the Universal Expo Milano in 2015). In October 2016 he started a new adventure as CEO of Makr Shakr, the maker of the world’s first robotic bar, where he’s now leveraging his skills at designing and managing complex processes and relationships, and his ability to recruit and manage high performing teams. Most importantly, he can quench his thirst for creativity, innovation and perfectly mixed cocktails.

Filippo Zanotto

Filippo was born in Turin where he graduated in Industrial Engineering and Management in July 2015. Before joining CRA he worked for sport and entertainment associations, dealing with events and cultural activities organization. He was also an intern at BasicNet, where he was operative for six months in the logistics department. He joined CRA in November 2015, as a member of the Makr Shakr team.