
Maria Lusitano
Lecturer

Artist, Academic, and Lecturer
Maria Lusitano is an artist, academic, and lecturer with a PhD in Media Studies and over nine years of higher-education teaching experience. Besides her artistic career, as an educator she specialises in Art History, Creative Practice, and interdisciplinary education, integrating critical pedagogy, creative exploration, and research-led approaches into her curriculum design and delivery.
As a visual artist, Maria has exhibited extensively on the international stage, including at Manifesta 5, Photo España, and the 29th São Paulo Biennial (2010). Her work has also been shown in prestigious venues such as the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, Joshibi University in Tokyo (2010), Lewis Glucksman Gallery in Ireland (2013), the Portuguese National Museum of Contemporary Art (2018), MAAT Museum (2020) and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (2019, 2023), among others.
Her work is held in prominent collections such as the Victoria & Albert Museum Artist Book Collection, Centre Pompidou’s Artist Book Collection, the MoMA Artist Book Collection, the EDP Museum, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, and various esteemed private collections—including those of Professor Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa(President of Portugal) and art patron António Cachola.
Alongside her academic career, Maria leads independent workshops and lectures on themes such as Drawing and the Soul, Sacred Geometry and the Arts, and Dreams and Art. These programs have been hosted by institutions including Goldsmiths, University of London, Museum of Biodiversity in Porto, and Casa do Jardim da Estrela in Lisbon, exploring the intersections of art, spirituality, and creative education.
In her role at The Brilliant Club, Maria designs and delivers Art History and Visual Culture courses to students aged 8–18, empowering non-traditional learners with academic research skills and critical engagement with the arts. Her teaching philosophy champions widening participation, experiential learning, and the cultivation of cultural literacy through artistic practice.