Gabriella Giannachi

Gabriella Giannachi is Professor of Performance and New Media and Director of the Centre for Intermedia at the University of Exeter's Faculty of Humanities, Department of English. She leads interdisciplinary collaborations between artists, academics, and scientists to advance research in performance and digital arts.

Her educational background includes:

• BA in Modern Languages and Literatures from Turin University's Faculty of Letters and Philosophy
• PhD in English from Cambridge University, researching silence in modern European Drama with Trinity Hall scholarship

Giannachi's research pioneers performance documentation in mixed reality environments, examining how digital archives function as mobile interpretation hubs for cultural engagement. She investigates mobile user-generated documentation's role in knowledge production, museum visitor dynamics, memory formation, and identity construction within ecological and heritage contexts, with significant focus on copyright and accessibility implications.

Her publication trends reveal consistent exploration of presence theory across physical-digital boundaries, with award-winning CHI conference papers (2009-2013) and books like 'Performing Mixed Reality' (2011) establishing frameworks for understanding mixed reality performance, environmental art, and digital heritage preservation.

Her scientific recognition includes:

• Three consecutive CHI Best Paper Awards (2009, 2012, 2013)
• Theatre Library Association Book Award nomination for 'Performing Presence' (2012)
• Royal Society of Arts Fellowship nomination (2012)

While specific advisees aren't documented, her research partnerships demonstrate extensive collaborative supervision across institutions including Tate, Imperial War Museum, British Library, and Stanford Libraries, securing projects that integrate artistic practice with scientific research. As Centre for Intermedia Director, she cultivates experimental teams investigating how digital archives transform cultural engagement through mobile platforms, particularly in environmental contexts via partnerships with Met Office Hadley Centre and Ludwig Boltzman Institute.