# Tana H. > Strategy ⊹ Design ⊹ R&D ⇢ Radical generalist building at the emergent nexus of creativity, technology, and culture Location: Oakland, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/tana Strategist, designer, and radical generalist building at the emergent nexus of creativity, technology, and culture for over 20 years. My practice blends strategy, systems thinking, hands-on craft, and creative intuition to move ambitious work into the world with integrity. As R&D Director at Spherical, I architect and steward generative research that advances the studio's knowledge, strategic position, and capacity to create new value. Previously, I served on the founding executive team at Sphere, led innovative initiatives for Fortune 500 clients at Obscura Digital, and collaborated with the founders of Gray Area and Recombinant Media Labs to establish influential art and technology institutions. I hold a BA in Interdisciplinary Computing and the Arts from UC San Diego and an MFA in Electronic Music and Media from Mills College. Grounded in theory, philosophy, science, and technical craft, my studies focused on designing and building creative tools, interactive and spatial media, and generative audio and video production. Across every context and scale, my throughline has been: opening and actualizing new fields of potential through transdisciplinary inquiry. I'm currently exploring how regenerative frameworks, AI, and place-based practice can reshape the way we design with and for the living world. ## Work Experience ### Research & Development Director @ Spherical Jan 2025 – Present I partner with the co-founders to develop new knowledge, methods, products, and services that shape where Spherical is headed. Through cross-functional coherence and adaptive decision-making, we turn complex challenges into data-informed, cross-sector tools that enable deep systemic change. Our anchor project is the Living Infrastructure Field Kit, a philanthropically funded mapping and co-design platform reimagining how infrastructure is conceived in Los Angeles County, starting with communities. We also explore living systems through diverse inquiries and modalities, including coding experiments, ecological data visualizations, immersive productions, and site-specific performances. We do research, development, and production, pursuing both big-picture inquiries and focused deep dives. The problems we're contending with are complex enough that everyone here is regularly stretched, requiring us to grapple with systems rather than isolated pieces. We see things through from conception to delivery. Ideas matter, but so does the work of bringing them into the world. Our work requires embracing paradox. We prototype futures while shipping useful tools now, source from the uniqueness of places while designing for patterns across scales, and set clear intent while staying open to emergence. We explore ways to make living systems perceptible and cultivate reciprocal relations with them through practical, accessible tools and experiences. We pay attention to cascading effects, not just direct outcomes. ### Product Manager @ Spherical Jan 2024 – Jan 2025 ### Senior Director, Real-time Software @ Sphere Entertainment Co. Jan 2021 – Jan 2023 A world’s first $2.3B immersive immersive destination. • Led the R&D Program, developing 0-1 real-time software, graphics, rendering & show systems for the Sphere’s 360 16k display • Defined and managed strategy, roadmap and $7M annual program operating budget • Built team of 20+ hybrid and remote product designers & engineers; defined streamlined multi-platform collaboration systems • Initiated and architected 0-1 real-time content and creator tools with complex hardware, software, and cloud dependencies, substantially expanding the creative palette and production pipeline • Collaborated with cross-functional stakeholders and vendors to define and oversee 0-1 creative and technical specifications, resulting in groundbreaking capabilities and reliable performance • Partnered with the U2 team for Sphere’s debut residency; provided specs & workflow solutions to eliminate blockers & enable rapid ideation, decreasing production time by ~40% ### Senior Director, Experience Strategy & Design @ Sphere Entertainment Co. Jan 2020 – Jan 2021 | Burbank, California, United States Program lead: immersive visual language, customer experience • Defined Sphere's CX across all physical & digital touch points • Partnered with executives across marketing, live production, venue technology & operations, engineering and production to create and implement a cohesive end-to-end journey • Created aesthetic vocabulary and immersive content guidelines, dramatically increasing quality by reducing framing errors and human factors issues by ~80% ### Head of Design & Creative Services @ Sphere Entertainment Co. Jan 2018 – Jan 2020 | San Francisco, California, United States Program lead: creative development, brand & integrated experience design • Worked closely with the President and SVP Creative to define and build the design function & org • Led team of 15 full-time designers and creative directors • Defined and managed ~$2.5M annual program operating budget • Oversaw studio brand & design systems, ensuring cohesive end-to-end brand expression • Produced the first immersive show pitch to be green lit by the head of the company ### Creative Director @ Obscura Digital Jan 2016 – Jan 2018 | San Francisco, California, United States ### Producer @ Obscura Digital Jan 2015 – Jan 2016 | San Francisco Bay Area • Created and managed project scope, schedules, budgets, deliverables, and resources for complex immersive experiences ### Experience Designer, Creative Technologist & Producer @ Unknown Jan 2012 – Jan 2015 Concept development, design, technical specification and production of digital & printed media, creative technology, creator tools, immersive installations and performances, interactive museum exhibits, art & technology education programs, symposia, and artist residencies. Clients: Virgin, OMCA, ICAS, Berkeley Art Museum, Protos Digital Art & Technology, Electronic Cinema, Decibel, Interferenze, Mutek, and more. ### Co-founder & Executive Director @ Liminal Space Jan 2010 – Jan 2012 | Oakland, California, United States Founded and led an emerging art and technology studio. We provided a platform for experimentation and collaboration, and facilitated the production and dissemination of visionary works and practices. ### Director of Operations @ Gray Area Foundation For The Arts Jan 2008 – Jan 2010 | San Francisco A 501(c)3 non-profit organization supporting art and technology for social good. Collaborated with the founder to conceptualize, design, curate, and run the organization’s business model and public programs. ### Associate Director @ Recombinant Media Labs / Asphodel Records Jan 2004 – Jan 2008 | San Francisco Co-led the design of the immersive av platform, engineered custom spatial a/v software, produced dozens of events and residencies, represented the organization internationally, and developed key commercial and cultural partnerships. Designed printed and digital marketing assets, and managed distribution for the record label. ### Product Designer & Technical Writer @ Immersive Media Research Jan 2003 – Jan 2004 | San Diego, Ca Part of the team at IMR that created the Vortex Surround software products for professional spatial audio content production. ## Education ### BA in Interdisciplinary Computing and the Arts UC San Diego ### MFA in Electronic Music & Media Mills College ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/tanahelean - Website: https://www.tanahelean.com --- Source: https://flows.cv/tana JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/tana/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-08