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Umberto Tolino

Graduated in Industrial Design at Politecnico di Milano with a thesis with Philips Design Milano, investigating user experiences on digital platforms.
Designer and researcher in Communication and Interaction Design, and member of AIAP – Italian Communication Design Association from 1997 to 2018. Included in four ADI Compasso d’Oro Design Index listings, and selected for two exhibitions: “The New Italian Design at the Triennale di Milano” and “Farnesina Design Collection”. In 2018 achieved the Compasso d'Oro ADI honorable mention and in 2019 won a Red Dot Design Award.

He teaches at the School of Design, Politecnico di Milano, before as Adjunct Professor (2002-2010), then as Assistant Professor (2010-2018), and Associate Professor (2018-ongoing), lecturing on digital communication and leading advanced interactive design projects. Since 2001 he is lecturer on Brand and Interaction Design at POLI.design, post-graduate master classes. In the last ten years, he has been visiting professor at Unisinos University of Porto Alegre – Brazil, conducting several workshops on Digital Branding.

After a crowdfunding campaign launched on Indiegogo platform, in 2015 he founded the Startup Thingk, a University spin-off aimed to conduct research, development and consulting around a new idea of smart design products based on Embedded User Interface. He mainly investigates Interaction Design applied to the communicative artifacts (both digital and physical), Social Innovation, Brand Identity and Digital Media. He contributed to the national and international discussion on these topics publishing several essays, book chapters, contributions in journal, and giving talks in various conferences.


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Magazine Articles

Design and electronics at the service of a new generation of everyday objects