By working together and from a pluralism of perspectives, Cumulus members are uniquely positioned to champion the impact of art and design in making a positive difference in the world—I am thrilled to be a catalyst for that effort.
Read moreThe internationalization work that Cumulus facilitates is more relevant than ever in an interdependent world where globally competent artists and designers are better equipped not only to foster better understanding and respect among individuals of diverse backgrounds but also gain a level of cross-cultural competency from the exposure to international experiences and study abroad that translate into the soft skills the global labor market requires today. It is my distinct honor to serve the Cumulus community as its current President. In an elected membership association like ours, with the excellence and diversity of all our constituents, one has a very tangible sense from the first day in the role about the weight of the responsibility and the relatively brief and fleeting nature of the stewardship one is entrusted with. Along with each of my colleagues in the Executive Board, I definitely strive every day to approach the role with that high order of accountability. Another sentiment that energizes me is a sense of great urgency and disciplined purpose. Urgency: because there is so much to accomplish to continue building on our inspiring legacy! Disciplined purpose: We must harness a lot of forward momentum to create new conditions to leverage the incredible global platform we collectively share as an association.
- Biography
- President’s Letters
- Lectures
Cumulus President
Mariana Amatullo, PhD
Vice Provost, Global Executive Education and Online Strategic Initiatives Associate Professor, Parsons School of Design, The New School, USA
Dr. Mariana Amatullo became the fourth Cumulus President and the first President of the association to come from a non-European-based institution when she was elected in the General Assembly of May 2019 at the University of Lapland in Rovaniemi, Finland. She took on the role after two successful terms of service on the Board from 2013 to 2019. Mariana’s approach as a steward of the association has been to continue building on the legacy and foundational values of Cumulus while undertaking a disciplined process of organizational capacity building—a process accelerated by the onslaught of the pandemic in 2020. Highlights of her work to date include leading the re-launch of the Cumulus Green student competitions; shaping a participatory process with the Board to develop a new strategic plan, Cumulus at 30, and establishing a focused structure for the Board’s ongoing work via sub-committees organized according to areas of expertise and interest that correspond to the objectives of the strategic plan. In 2021 she produced the Cumulus at 30 Anniversary Campaign with interviews of all three past presidents and a member film about their aspirations for the future. In the context of the pandemic, one of her chief priorities has been to prioritize member engagement through communication via a more robust editorial content approach for the association’s monthly newsletter; helping initiate with colleagues the CumulusConnects micro-site for 2020 global conversations, and working with the Secretariat and the Board on the association’s current website that premiered in December 2021. Her work with the Board has expanded the resources of the Secretariat (adding a third team member and coordinator) and strengthened board policies for shared governance, diversity, equity, and inclusion as the association continues on a globalization growth trajectory.
Mariana is an experienced academic administrator, strategist, educator, researcher, and author who brings two decades of global leadership in the art and design fields into her role serving Cumulus members. Mariana has led award-winning educational initiatives, research projects, and publications at the intersection of design, design management, and social innovation throughout her academic trajectory. In her full-time faculty role at Parsons School of Design, Mariana teaches an inspiring cadre of international graduate students from Parsons’ Masters in Strategic Design and Management. She is an affiliated faculty with the Parsons DESIS Lab and the university’s graduate minor in Public Service Design. Mariana’s research and publishing explore the cognitive agency of design in advancing innovation in the public and social sectors. Since joining Parsons in 2017, Mariana has served the university in various administrative roles in the Provost Office. In 2021, Mariana was appointed Vice Provost for Global Executive Education and Online Strategic Initiatives with a mandate to lend academic strategy and leadership to develop these priority areas of innovation and expansion across new degree and non-degree format delivery; a key focus of her work in this role has been to launch the division of Parsons Executive Education at The New School. Previously, Mariana co-founded and led the social innovation department, Designmatters, at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California. Mariana lectures internationally about design and social innovation. She serves on the various executive and advisory boards in design and the arts, including The Vera List Center for Arts and Politics. In January 2022 Mariana started her term as a member of the Board of Aalto University. She is the recipient of the inaugural 2012 DELL Social Innovation Award for Outstanding Social Innovation Education, a Salzburg Global Fellow, a Fellow with the Royal Society of the Arts, and a Scholar-in-Residence Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University. Mariana is the author and editor of several academic journal articles, book chapters, and publications that address the role of designers as agents of societal transformation. Her latest book (co-editor) Design for Social Innovation: Case Studies from around the World, was published by Routledge in November 2021. Mariana holds a Ph.D. in Management (Designing Sustainable Systems) from Case Western Reserve University; an M.A. in Art History and Museum Studies from the University of Southern California, and a Licence en Lettres Degree from the Sorbonne University, Paris, where she also studied Art History at L’Ecole du Louvre. A native of Argentina and the child of a diplomat, Mariana is trilingual (Spanish, French, and English) and grew up around the world. Watch Mariana’s interview as Cumulus President in the context of the association’s 30th Anniversary here.
Latest President’s Letter
April 2022
In her April letter, President Mariana Amatullo shares how quickly the Board and Secretariat organized to put the Cumulus in Ukraine program in place. Her account is complemented by that of CEB member Teemu Leinonen who expands on the program’s outcomes.
2022
2021
2020
President’s Lectures, Presentations, Juries & Media
The following is a selection of lectures, juries, podcast interviews, and various other media from President Amatullo during her term of service as Cumulus.
2022
Juror, Golden Pin Design Awards, 2022 edition, Taiwan Design Research Institute (TDRI).
Juror, IF Talent Design Awards, 2022 edition.
Invited Keynote, Design for the Un-Imagined. Word Design Organization, Design Research, and Education Forum, February 22, 2022.
2021
Invited Keynote, Design for Social Innovation Today: Case Studies from a dynamic global field, Cumulus +Adada Educational Symposium, December 4-5, 2021.
Juror, JumptheGap ROCA International Design Contest, Shigeru Ban, Jury President, 2021.
Juror, Savia: Imagining the Future of Fibers, 2021.
Opening Remarks, Cumulus Presidential Address, Cumulus Guayaquil Conference: Arts Imagining Communities to Come, Universidad de las Artes, November 2021.
Podcast Interview, Mariana Amatullo on Design For Social Innovation with Roy Sharples, Unknown Origins Podcast, August 2021.
Opening Remarks, Cumulus + New European Bauhaus Initiative, Cumulus Connects Global Conversation, (Virtual) August 26, 2021.
Opening and Closing Remarks, Cumulus Presidential Address, Cumulus Roma Conference 2021, Design Culture (s), Sapienza University, June 8-10, Rome and Virtual, 2021.
Invited International Lecture, “ Designing for Social Innovation: New Insights across a Pluralism of Practices,” Design Products, Royal College of Art, London (Virtual), May 27, 2021. Keynote Speaker, Imagination Summit,” Flourish Together,” Lancaster University, UK (Virtual), March 18, 2021. Juror, INDEX Award Diseño Responde, 2021. Keynote Panelist, “Design Education and Play: the Social Innovation Imperative,” Industry Panel on behalf of Cumulus, “Toy’Ing with Design,” Ahmedabad Design Week (ADW 2021), February 3-7, 2021. Invited Lecture, “Beyond the studio walls: Lessons and Opportunities from the forced shift to distance education,” Future of Design Education Academic Colloquium, Division of Science, Arts and Design, UAM, Mexico (Virtual), November 23-24, 2020. Keynote, Tongji University College of Design and Innovation, “The New Social Commitment of Design Education,” Design Education in 2035: Emerging Practices and Education Conference 2020, (Virtual) Shanghai, China, November 21, 2020. Opening Keynote Lecture for Chile’s Month of Design, “Design Attitude y el Nuevo Compromiso Social del Diseño,” (Virtual), What is the significance of designing today? Organized by the Ministry of Culture and Creative Economy, Chile, November 5, 2020, https://mesdeldiseno.cl/. Keynote Lecture on behalf of Cumulus, Open Design Afrika, The Power, Role, and Future of Design Education, Cape Town, South Africa October 29, 2020, Virtual Festival edition. Panelist, Cumulus Connects Global Conversation Series, “The Changing Needs of Design Education and Research: A Global Perspective,” Virtual, September 11, 2020. Panelist, Academic Series, Escuela de Diseño y Arquitectura, Tecnológico de Monterrey, “El Diseño Que Viene,” Mexico, Virtual, June 12, 2020. Juror, The One Show Awards, 2020. Juror, Inaugural Human City Design Award, Seoul Metropolitan Government, in collaboration with UNESCO’s Cities of Design Network, September 2019, Seoul, Korea. Keynote Lecture, Human City Design Award, September 26, 2019, Seoul, Korea. Invited Lecture, Design Thinking Research Center, Yonsei University,” Towards a Design Attitude for Social Innovation and Organizational Change,” September 24, Seoul, Korea. Opening Remarks Lecture, Cumulus Colombia: The Design After Conference, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, October 2019. Keynote Lecture, Regenerating Good International Symposium, “Bringing a Design Attitude to Social Change,” September 11, New York. Invited Panelist, Lapland University, “New Perspectives through Strategic Collaborations: Expectations, Strategies, and Formats,” round table organized by Köln International School of Design for the Cumulus Conference in Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland (May 31st, 2019).2020
2019