Professional Experience
2024-present: Co-founder of HAQUE TAN
2024-present: Design Council Expert
2021-2024: Associate Artistic Director at Kakilang
2013-Present: Senior Design Lead & Creative Technologist at Umbrellium
2020-2021: Urban Interaction Designer at Starling Technologies
2010-2012: Architectural Designer at Ministry Of Design
2012-2014: Freelance Interior and Graphic Designer
Residencies and Fellowships
2023-2024: Hungry Ecocities S+T+ARTS Residencies – Low Carbon Climate Cookbook
2022-2023: Great Ormond Street Hospital Creative Resident in collaboration with Usman Haque – GOSH Arts
2023: Compass Live Art – Food and Climate Artist Residency
2020-2021: Art & Well-being artistic residency – hosted by Cluj Cultural Centre
2017-2018: alt.barbican development programme – supported by Barbican and The Trampery
2016-2019: Fault Lines development programme- supported by FutureEverything
2015: Artistic residency – hosted by Fak’ugesi African Digital Innovation Festival
Education
2012-2013: Bartlett School Of Architecture, Interactive Architecture Lab, M(Arch) – Distinction
2011: University of Oregon – School of Architecture and Allied Arts, M(Arch) – Exchange Programme
2006-2010: National University of Singapore, Architecture BA(Hons)
Skills
Language: English and Mandarin – written and spoken
Design: Autocad, Rhino 3D Modelling, SketchUp, Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects
Coding: Arduino, Javascript, CSS, HTML, Processing, openFramework, PHP, Node.js
Making: 3D printing, Metal work, circuit board design
Selected Exhibitions
Upcoming Feb 2025: Playing Democracy 2.0 at Youth Film Festival in Antwerp
Nov 2024: Low Carbon Chinatown Pop-Up & Supper Club at Compass Festival 2024
Oct 2024: Strata at the Control Centre Building at the former Barking Power Station
Sept 2024: Low Carbon Chinatown exhibited at Ars Electronica 2024
Apr 2024: Playing Democracy 2.0 at STRP Festival in Eindhoven
Sept 2023: Air Assembly as part of OPEN AIR! Commission shortlist at P21 Gallery as part of London Design Festival
Nov 2022: Playing Democracy at Next Level Festival at Zollverein in Essen Germany
Oct 2022: SUPERPOWER! at Matsudo International Science Art Festival – Ars Electronica Selection
April 2022: Playing Democracy at Somerset House as part of Now Play This Festival
March 2022: Playing Democracy (video) at Fukuoka City Science Museum as part of Asia Digital Art Award Fukuoka
Feb – March 2022: Playing Democracy at Zebrastraat Art Centre as part of New Technological Art Award (NTAA’22)
Oct 2021: Digital SUPERPOWER! Lab digital gallery showcase at Fakugesi 2021 African Digital Innovation Festival
August 2021: Growing Riversiders at The Wilds Ecology Centre
March 2020 – April 2021: Playing Democracy at Barbican Centre
Jan-March 2020: SUPERGESTURES at Making Fashion Sense Exhibition in HeK at Basel, Switzerland
Jan 2020: Pollution Explorers at Depictions of Living Exhibition at The Art Pavilion, London
Nov 2019: SUPERPOWER! and SUPERGESTURES at Wellcome Trust, London (UK)
April 2019: Pollution Explorers at Vertigo STARTS Forum 2019 at Centre Pompidou, Paris (FR)
March 2019: Pollution Explorers at STRP festival, Eindhoven (NE)
Sept 2018: SUPERGESTURES at Revo Manchester 2018 at Manchester (UK)
July 2018: SUPERGESTURES at Bio-Body-Tech Room at FutureFest 2018, London(UK)
March 2018: SUPERGESTURES solo exhibition at Future Session , hosted by FutureEverything in Manchester (UK)
Nov 2017: Co-Scriptable Bodies presented in Barbican as part of alt.barbican showcase in London (UK)
Sept 2017: Co-Scriptable Bodies in Victoria and Albert Museum, as part of Digital Design Weekend 2017
Aug 2017: Co-Scriptable Bodies in Place Des Art, Montreal as part of MUTEK festival 2017
Oct 2015: Sensemaking In the City in Wits Art Museum as part of Fakugesi African Digital Innovation Festival at Johannesburg, South Africa
Sept 2015: Reality Mediator in Utopian Bodies – Fashion Looks Forward in Liljevalchs Art Institution in Stockholm, Sweden
June 2014: Reality Mediator in Fiber Festival: Coded Matter(s) : Extended Senses in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Selected Commissions
Upcoming 2024: Regent’s Park Estate Public Realm Commission (part of HAQUE TAN)
2024: Low Carbon Chinatown Pop-Up & Supper Club at Compass Festival 2024
2024: HAQUE TAN collaboration with Barking Riverside at Control Centre
2024: Playing Democracy 2.0 at STRP Festival 2024
2022-23: Great Ormond Street Hospital Temporary Entrance as part of GOSH Creative Resident – GOSH Arts
2023: Low Carbon Chinatown Supper Club at Manchester Museum
2023: Low Carbon Chinatown Supper Club at Barking Riverside
2022: Low Carbon Chinatown – Kakilang
2022: Taking Root 2.0 – Imagineer Production as part of Imagine Bamboo
2022: SUPERPOWER! Owen Square Bristol – Central Saint Martins
2022: SUPERPOWER! Liverpool x MMU – Manchester Metropolitan University
2021: SUPERMOMENTS x Corby and Leicester– LibertyUK Festival ArtReach
2021: Growing Riversiders – Barking Riverside Limited
2021: Taking Root – Imagineer Production as part of Bridg2Bamboo
2021: Climate Exploration Cookbook – Chinese Arts Now and Season For Change
2021: Digital SUPERPOWER! Romania – Cluj Cultural Centre & European Commission
2021: Digital SUPERPOWER! Restart Grant– British Council
2020: SUPERMOMENTS R&D – Without Walls Blueprint and 101 Seedbed
2020: Playing Democracy – Barbican and Lumen Art Projects
2019: SUPERPOWER! Mombasa – African Crossroads
2019: SUPERPOWER! Johannesburg – Fak’ugesi African Digital Innovation Festival
2019: Pollution Explorers – Vertigo STARTS
2018: SUPERGESTURES – Cityverve and FutureEverything
2018: SUPERPOWER! Liverpool – FACT
2017: – SUPERPOWER! Finsbury Park – Furtherfield and All Change
Selected Awards
2024: Asia Digital Art Award Fukuoka Finalist Award for Playing Democracy 2.0
2024: CultTech x Ars Electronica Award 2024 Shortlist for SUPERPOWER!
2024: S+T+ARTS Prize Nomination for Low Carbon Chinatown
2024: STRP Festival ACT Award for Playing Democracy 2.0
2023: Seoul Design Awards Finalist for Low Carbon Chinatown
2022: S+T+ARTS Prize Nomination for Digital SUPERPOWER!
2022: Asia Digital Art Award Fukuoka Finalist Award for Playing Democracy
2022: New Technological Art Awards Shortlist for Playing Democracy
2019: Lumen Art Prize Longlist for Pollution Explorers
2019: John Ruskin award Longlist for Pollution Explorers & SUPERGESTURES
Curatorial Projects
2023: State-less 無國界 Exhibition shown at Two Temple Place in London(UK)
2021: Digital SUPERPOWER! Digital Exhibition shown at Fak’ugesi Digital Innovation Festival 2021 in Johannesburg (SA)
Selected Speaking | Panels
2024: Moongate Mix at Omnibus Theatre
2024: Architect’s Journal Webinar
2024: Speaker at Confucius Institute Public Talk at University of Manchester
2023: Keynote with Usman Haque at ‘ForArtSake’ in Alhamra Art Centre, Lahore Pakistan
2023: Speaker at Repurposing the campus 2.0, hosted by University of Warwick
2023: Speaker at AI or Die?, hosted by Fourthspace x Design District
2023: Speaker at Ana-Cartography (…None of the Above), RCA
2023: Speaker at The Conference 2023 in Malmo, Sweden
2023: Panel at Bradford Climate Symposium 2023
2022: Speaker at Matsudo International Science Art Festival – Ars Electronica Selection
2022: Panellist at Food Forever Evening Talks at Kew Gardens
2022: Speaker at Low Carbon Design Institute 2022 Residency
2022: Speaker at Democracy, Installed Conversational Walk at Now Play This Festival 2022
2022: Speaker at Green Light: Programming for Environmental Responsibility by Invisible Dust
2022: Speaker at Design Ventura 2021-2022 Industry Insights Online Event
2021: Speaker at Bloomsbury Festival 2021
2021: Speaker at Rebuilding Architecture panel at Design Museum
2021: Speaker at Emerging Realities: Performance at London College of Fashion
2020: Speaker at Democratic Society & Public Square – In the Square
2019: Speaker at Digital And The Outdoor – Symposium hosted by 101 OUTDOOR ARTS
2019: Speaker at Coffey Architects
2019: Speaker at Collective Embodiment Event organised by Nesta
2019: Speaker at Fakugesi African Digital Innovation Festival
2019: Speaker at Space Invaders, Stockwool Architects, London
2019: Speaker at Read!Fest 2019, Singapore
2019: Keynote speaker at Sharing Society Conference, Bilbao
2019: Expert panel in Future Fiction Workshop at Furtherfield Gallery
2019: Speaker at STRP festival, Eindhoven, Netherlands
2019: Speaker at Vertigo STARTS Forum 2019 at Centre Pompidou, France
2019: Speaker at FutureEverything Fault Lines Showcase, Manchester
2018: Speaker at Bilbao Design Week 2018 – Cities & Design Conference
2018: Speaker at PechaKucha Night Manchester
2018: Presented Pollution Explorers at Centre Pompidou, Paris
2018: FutureFest 2018 Debate Panel: Virtual physical immersion
2018: Speaker at Future Session In-conversation series
2018: Speaker at Colossal Dust: Practices of Obsession and Investigation by This Happened London
2017: Speaker at Art Subverting Reality: alt.barbican, alt.MUTEK and Milieux at MUTEK Festival 2017
2017: Speaker at Interfaces Monthly: Speculative Societies by The Trampery
2017: Speaker at talk series “Architecture and Citizenship”, hosted by Museum of Architecture, London
2016: “Hack The Senses” Special Edition Dialogue -The London Design Festival 2016
2016: ThingMonk 2016
2016: Judged at Hack The Senses Hackathon at FabLab London
2016: Artful Spark #03 Sensors at Barbican
2016: Keynote speaker for Makerthon 2016 at FabLab Sunderland
2016: Wearable Technology Show 2016
2015: Smart | City | Region: Event and Symposium
2015: Tech City International Women’s Day Showcase
2014: Moving Brands Design Agency
2014: 100% Open Spring Union, Nesta
2013: Wearable Futures 2013
2013: Fascinate Conference 2013
Selected Workshops | Involvement
2024: Hosted Low Carbon Chinatown Food System Workshops at Ars Electronica 2024.
2023: Hosted Low Carbon Chinatown Food System Workshops with 50 participants during Leeds Compass Live Art Residency.
2022: Hosted SUPERPOWER! workshop with groups of residents in Matsudo City, Japan as part of Matsudo International Science Art Festival
2022: Hosted Low Carbon Chinatown Food System Workshops with 60 participants from Chinatown, Hackney and Newham
2022: Hosted Taking Root workshops with 40 participants from Stoke-on-Trent, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Liverpool City Region
2022: Hosted SUPERPOWER! Workshops with 18 students from Gateacre School Liverpool
2022: Hosted SUPERPOWER! workshops with 15 young students from Gateacre School in Liverpool
2021: Hosted online workshops with 15 young creatives from London, Johannesburg and Bulawayo as part of Digital SUPERPOWER!
2021: Hosted in-person workshops with a group of local residents from Birmingham as part of Taking Root
2021: Hosted both online and physical workshops with a group of ESEA/Chinese residents in London as part of Climate Exploration Cookbook
2021: Hosted online workshops with group of young students living in Romania as part of SUPERPOWER! Romania
2021: Hosted online workshops with 60 East London residents as part of Pollution Explorers Collective Action
2021: Hosted online workshops with a group of local residents from Barking Riverside to develop Growing Riversiders
2021: Hosted online workshop with young children from Birmingham as part of The Feast‘s Winter Art Project ‘AND’
2019: Hosted in-person workshop with group of African female participants as part of SUPERPOWER! Mombasa as part of African Crossroads conference in Mombasa (KE)
2019: Hosted in-person workshop with group of university students as part of SUPERPOWER! Johannesburg, commissioned by Fakugesi African Digital Festival
2018-2019: Hosted in-person air quality workshops with 90 participants from UK and Europe as part of Pollution Explorers, funded by Vertigo
2018: Hosted in-person workshops with 50 young people from Manchester to develop SUPERGESTURES
2018: Hosted in-person air quality workshops with 50 young children as part of WearAQ 2
2018: Hosted in-person workshop with 20 young children from Liverpool as part of SUPERPOWER! Liverpool, commissioned by FACT Liverpool
2018: Coach/mentor at Dansathon 2018
2017: Hosted in-person air quality workshops with 20 young children as part of WearAQ
2017: Co-delivered a youth workshop together with Daisy Froud as part of Future Now Future City by Museum of London
2017: Hosted SUPERPOWER! Finsbury Park, commissioned by Furtherfield Gallery
2016: Hosted WearON workshop at The Bartlett Interactive Architecture Lab
Selected Interviews and Podcasts
2024: Peacemaker Pakistan Interview
2024: Five Minutes With…HAQUE TAN
2023: Interview with Femmes Designers
2023: Interview with Clot Magazine
2023: Interview with Empire Lines podcast series
2022: Low Carbon Chinatown – Soho Radio
2022: Femmes Designers community
2019: “Women on the streets of smart cities” – Guardian & Mail
2019: Lumen Prize Longlist profile – Ling Tan by Lumen Prize
2018: “SUPERPOWER! Ling Tan on Young Women & Wearable Technology” – Furtherfield Gallery
2018: “Using wearables to light up the politics of Manchester” – Alphr
2018: “CityCast – Episode 12: with Ling Tan, FAULT LINES; and Open Innovation selection day” – ACast podcast
2018: Interview on SUPERGESTURES – BBC Click
2018: “Sunday Brunch: Trust in invisible agents” – Monocle Radio
2017: “WoW Woman in Wearable Tech | Ling Tan, wearable tech designer, maker and software developer” – Women of Wearables
2015: “Fak’ugesi Episode 1: Ling Tan” – Future Lab AfricaR
Selected Published Writing
“Mediated Reality In Bearable Prosthesis: A Tool For Surveillance And Intervention” – as part of the proceedings of FASCINATE Conference: Thoughtful Technology & Beautiful Interfaces, 2013
“The Living Prosthesis: Limits of Human Bearability” – as part of Organs Everywhere issue “Ghostly”, 2017
Selected Publications and Catalogues
Art Review Vol 75
Edition: April 2023
“State-less”
Page: 98-99
ΠCase Files Vol.1
Edition: Fall 2020
“The Living Prosthesis: Limits of Human Bearability”
Publication: Punctum Books
Page: 272-283
ELLE Magazine – South Africa
Edition: August 2018
“Cracking the Code”
Author: Cayleigh Bright
Page: 58-60
Utopian Bodies – Fashion Looks Forward
Publisher: Liljevalchs katalog, 2016
Authors: Liljevalchs
ISBN: 978-86011-29-1
PAGE MAGAZINE
Issue: 10842
“The Sixth Sense – Interfaces with haptic feedback”
Author: Gabriele Gunder
Page start: 89
Some Past Project Partners
