The curatorial committee for Rapid Pulse 2013 consists of Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago Curatorial Assistant, Steven Bridges; Curator and Performance Artist, Julie Laffin; MA candidate in Arts History and Administration at the School of the Art Institute, Giana Gambino; and Defibrillator Founder and Director, Joseph Ravens.

Steven L. Bridges currently lives in Chicago, where he is Curatorial Assistant at the Museum of Contemporary Art. In addition to working at the museum, Bridges was on the curatorial team for Intrude: Art & Life 366 – a Zendai Museum of Modern Art initiative to present 366 daily projects in public spaces throughout Shanghai for an entire year.

Julie Laffin is a performance artist and independent curator. In addition to working on curatorial committees and panels with a variety of arts organizations, Laffin was active in curating all six editions of Site Unseen, an exhibition of live and media art held annually at the Chicago Cultural Center from 2004-2009.

Joseph Ravens (festival director and executive director, Defibrillator) is a graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with an MFA in Performance. In addition to several Illinois Art council fellowships, he has received numerous travel and exchange awards that have enabled him to build a global reputation.

Giana Gambino is an artist and administrator studying at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago working towards her Masters degree’s in Art History, Theory & Criticism and Arts Administration & Policy.