THE NOoSPHERE TEAM
Sol Kjøk
Founding Artistic Director + ED
A NYC-based visual artist who has lived and learned in six countries, Sol is also an arts community organizer: Fresh out of art school, she founded Mothership NYC, a live/work/presentation arena for international artists. When offered access to a storefront in the vibrant arts district of the Lower East Side in late 2010, Sol spontaneously decided to turn this space into NOoSPHERE Arts’ first incarnation as a gallery for artist colleagues from elsewhere. After five years in Manhattan, the organization is now headquartered in a Brooklyn warehouse that is also home to Sol’s painting studio, aka Last Frontier NYC.
director@noosphere-arts.nyc
Daniela Holban
Deputy Director
Daniela Holban is a Romanian-born curator, cultural producer, and community builder with over 15 years of professional experience in art institutions, museums, and nonprofits. Her curatorial practice seeks to respond to and present systems of self-reflection, identity, multipolarity, and sustainability. She is dedicated to public engagement, artist development, environmentally-based art programming, and action-driven communities. Daniela has worked with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Mana Contemporary, Artfare, {CTS} Creative Thriftshop, William Bennet Gallery, The Ear Classical, and The Fashion and Textile Museum. Part of our team since 2019, she has previously held positions as curator and director of programs.
daniela.holban@noosphere-arts.nyc
Matteo Rini, PhD
Director of Music & Science
Matteo Rini is a scientist, writer, and musician based in NYC, who is working on building bridges between science and art. He holds two PhD’s (Electrical Engineering, University of Pavia, Italy; Physics, Humboldt University of Berlin and Max Born Institute), worked at the US Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and has published articles in all major scientific journals, from Science to Nature. Seeking to connect science to society, he has worked in politics (European Commission, Climate Action Department), before taking up his current position as the Editor of the American Physical Society’s Physics Magazine. His artistic endeavors include curating the music program of Planeta, an innovative sound and media enterprise that offered a live-music venue in Manhattan between 2014-2019, and playing as a guitarist with NYC Latin bands Tinto Frio and Matapena. Matteo contributed to the science-inspired dance “The Brain Piece” (see the NY Times feature) and co-wrote “Memory Bites,” a dance-theater show illustrating the power of food memories (presented at the 2018 NYC Latitude Dance Festival).
matteo.rini@noosphere-arts.nyc
Asia Sztencel
Education Director
Asia Sztencel is a Polish-born artist and educator dedicated to weaving art into community life. She holds dual MFAs in Social Practice from CUNY, Queens College, and in Printmaking from the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow. With over a decade of experience in Greenpoint, Asia has led more than twenty projects addressing gentrification and cultural transition. Her current initiative, “You Can Carry Your Landscape With You,” collaborates with the Brooklyn Public Library and local institutions to empower older community members. Recognized with the 2023 SU-CASA Award and the 2023 BPL Heritage Ambassador Program Award, she creates inclusive, intergenerational spaces where stories are shared and connections flourish through the transformative power of art.
education@noosphere-arts.nyc
Sandeep Bedadala
Creative Digital Director
Sandeep Bedadala is an Indian Visual Designer, Animation Filmmaker & Educator currently based in New York City. Storytelling being at the heart of his creative practice, Sandeep’s work spans interactive media, motion media and editorial design. In addition to his independent creative practice, Sandeep has over 10 years of experience working with creative studios and educational institutions in India and the United States including the Digital Worlds Institute at the University of Florida, Media Arts Lab at Agastya International Foundation and the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. He holds a Masters of Arts in Digital Arts & Sciences from the University of Florida.
media@noosphere-arts.nyc
Daniela Kuntz
Sustainability & Strategy Advisor
Trained as a scientist, Daniela is a Brazilian environmental consultant and biologist with over ten years of experience in the sustainability field. Previously working mostly with technical solutions and public policies, her passion is to explore the potential for human behavior change through self-awareness as a key aspect to achieving sustainable systems. Dedicated to holistic theories, spiritual learnings and practices, Daniela came to New York in 2015 for a second MA in sustainability. Upon entering the vibrant art scene in this city, she fully realized the power of creative expression to transform self and society. Since then, her work has been focused on combining sustainability, spirituality, and creativity.
daniela.kuntz@noosphere-arts.nyc
Cristina Pizzuto
International Trainee
Born in Italy, Cristina Pizzuto is a contemporary art historian and curator whose research focuses on underrepresented identities. Through her curatorial practice, Cristina seeks to highlight what has historically been hidden in the arts, such as identities and bodies that position themselves outside the male, white, straight, cisgender equation. She holds a Master of Music from the Alessandro Scarlatti Conservatory of Music in Palermo and a Master's Degree in History of Arts and Conservation of Artistic Heritage from the Ca' Foscari University of Venice.
press@noosphere-arts.nyc