Designing digital experiences

Designing digital experiences
and communication
for research institutions.

👋 Hi! I'm Stefano and I'm based in Milan, Italy. I'm currently head of communication at the Italian National Research Council's Department of Social Sciences and Humanities, Cultural Heritage (CNR-DSU) and work as a UX designer at CNR-ISMed's Mediterranean Digital Humanities Lab.

User Centered Design User Experience User Interface Communication Semiotics Accessibility Analytics Digital Marketing
Portrait of Stefano Carotenuto

Photo © Diego Marino, 2023

Curriculum Vitae

2023 — Present

Head of Communication

National Research Council — Dept. of Social Sciences and Humanities, Cultural Heritage (CNR-DSU) · Milan

Digital strategy, web management, social media, stakeholder communications, and analytics for CNR-DSU. Communication Officer for the department within the CNR national network.

2024 — Present

UX Designer

Mediterranean Digital Humanities Lab, CNR-ISMed · Milan

UI/UX design for the WeMed research platform. Interface architecture, user flows, accessibility compliance, and design system documentation.

2010 — 2024

UX Design & Communication

National Research Council - Multiple roles - CNR-ISGI and CNR-IRISS · Naples and Milan

Over fourteen years of digital strategy, and institutional relations across public research and cultural organisations.

2025 — Ongoing

MA in Semiotics

Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna

Research focus on digital semiotics, visual communication, and the theory of meaning in institutional and media contexts.

2023

Google UX Design Professional Certificate

Google · Coursera

Seven-course program covering the full UX design process: user research, wireframing, prototyping, and usability testing. Credential issued by Google.

2022 — 2025

BA in Innovative Communication in Multimedia and Digital environments

IUL University - Florence

Graduated cum laude. Studies in media theory, digital communication, and institutional communications.

2011 — 2012

Graphic Design and Advertising Course

New Media Art and Design School - Naples

I learned concepts and techniques for creatively and effectively expressing communication messages through brand campaign simulations, brochure design, poster design, and various typographic and digital products.

Street.
Observation.
Chance.

When I'm not designing stuff, I walk and photograph. Street photography is where I train my eye for framing, timing, and the unexpected.

Recognised by Magnum photographers Martin Parr and Steve McCurry. Exhibited at the HistoryMiami Museum during Art Basel Miami, featured in Corriere della Sera Style Magazine. Co-author of 10 Street Photography (Psicografici Editore, 2023).

  • Surfboard leaning against a glass-fronted bar during a heavy snowfall in Manhattan
  • Hospital room with rolling hills landscape wallpaper wrapping the walls and ceiling, surgical lamp overhead, blue sheets on the bed
  • Photographer crouching to shoot a large-scale mountain art installation covering the facade of Milano Centrale station
  • Crowd of photographers with telephoto lenses aiming at a figure in white outside a Milan Fashion Week venue at golden hour
  • Aerial view of Manhattan rooftops, street grid, and a construction site seen from above
  • Lone figure walking along a rural dirt road at blue hour, backlit by approaching car headlights
  • Striped curtain caught by the wind on a whitewashed Mediterranean terrace overlooking a green hillside
  • Two people in red outfits adorned with pressed flowers posing on a park bench at a summer gathering
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