Designer, Dad, Technologist, Researcher and Educator

Felix Hardmood Beck studied visual communication with focus on media design and exhibition design at the Berlin University of the Arts, Germany. He graduated with the terminal degree Diplom Designer (2007/equivalent to MA) and received the prestigious Meisterschüler entitlement (2011) under the patronage of Prof. Joachim Sauter.

Since 2001, Felix has gained extensive practical experience in media design and spatial user experiences.
He has collaborated with several well-known German design agencies and architectural studios on various projects, which have been featured in art and design publications, as well as festivals and exhibitions worldwide. Currently, as independent design director, he works with clients from both the business and cultural sectors, developing and executing designs for products and services, as well as creating engaging media environments and interactive installations for showrooms, trade fairs, exhibitions, and museums.
He has a passion for sharing his knowledge and experiences, which has led him to lecture at institutions across the globe and to collaborate with international research groups.

From 2015 to 2020 he full-time served as Assistant Professor of Practice of Design at New York University
Abu Dhabi (NYUAD/Engineering Department) teaching courses that focused on art, design, technology, and innovation. During this time, he kick-started two research labs, namely the NTSI Lab and the Plastic Lab, which he led as the principal investigator until 2020. During this time he initiated various internship and volunteer programs, and integrated more than 50 student research assistants into his work. His research results and findings were published in scientific papers, posters, research conferences, art exhibitions, and design festivals. Living in the UAE from 2015 to 2020, he provided consultancy services to several federal ministries, governmental departments, and partners in the United Arab Emirates, focusing on the areas of design and innovation. In recognition of his accomplishments (see summary of accomplishments at NYUAD) he was awarded the WSN Faculty Fellowship by New York University in 2019.

In 2020 he moved with his family from the United Arab Emirates back to Germany (further information).
Felix continues to maintain close ties with NYUAD: From 10/2020 to 10/2023 he was Visiting Research Professor at NYUAD’s Cities – Center for Interacting Urban Networks.

From 2020 to 2023 Felix was Full Professor with life tenure at the University of Applied Sciences (MSD Münster School of Design). In this capacity, he successfully collaborated with his colleague, Professor Daniela Kichlechner, to restructure the Foundations program. He mainly taught Freshmen delivering courses in digital design basics. Beginning  of 2024, he got appointed as Professor for Media Design with life tenure, prompting a shift to the Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering (ETI). In this position, he instructs on Media Design in both the undergraduate (BA) and graduate (MA) programs. In his continuing research activities he investigates with his students and project collaborators systems, spaces and physical properties of artefacts and materials to envision scenarios and pioneer use-cases for the interaction of humans through media and deployed Narrative Technologies. Over the years, Felix has received over 730.000 USD in research grants and related funding for different research related projects.

Currently he holds affiliations with the IKFM Institute for Construction and Functional Material [→] (Münster University of Applied Sciences, Germany), the HeritageLab International Research Group [→]
(New York University Abu Dhabi, UAE), and  Dharma Life Labs [→] (Dharma Life, New Delhi, India).