Koert van Mensvoort Keynote Speaker

Dr. Koert van Mensvoort is an artist and philosopher best known for his work on the philosophical concept of Next Nature, which revolves around the idea that our technological environment has become so complex, omnipresent and autonomous that it is best perceived as a nature of its own. It is his aim to better understand our co-evolutionary relationship with technology and help set out a track towards a future that is rewarding for both humankind and the planet at large.

Van Mensvoort started his career in the late eighties with the creation of video games – belonging to the first generation of whizz-kids who are now no longer kids. In the nineties he moved on and studied computer science, philosophy and art. He received a MSc in computer sciences from Eindhoven University of Technology (1997) a MFA from the Sandberg Institute, Masters of Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam (2000) and a PhD in industrial design from Eindhoven University of Technology (2009).

He uses all media to materialize his philosophy. Among his works are the traveling NANO Supermarket, showing nano-technology products that might hit the shelves within the next 10 year. The internet enabled Datafountain, connecting money to water, the book ‘Next Nature: Nature changes along with us’, the documentary ‘Daddy! The Woods smell of Shampoo’, the Fake for Real memory game, the fictional shoe company Rayfish.com that stirred a discussion on emerging biotechnologies and the In Vitro Meat Cookbook, exploring the potential impact of lab grown meat on our food culture.

Van Mensvoort is author of numerous books and publications; among them “Next Nature, Save the Humans, Pyramid of Technology” (2012), “What You See Is What You Feel,” “Natuur 2.0” and the “In Vitro Meat Cookbook.”

Van Mensvoort is director of the Next Nature Network; a 21st century nature organization that wants to go forward – not back – to nature. Furthermore he is appointed Next Nature fellow at the Eindhoven University of Technology, board member at the Society of Arts of the Dutch Royal Academy of Sciences and supervisory board member of VPRO broadcasting organisation. Earlier Van Mensvoort worked a researcher at the Center for User-System Interaction (1998-2003), as a teacher at the Sandberg Institute (2002-2006) and as a Visionary in Residence at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena (2008).