Name: Hélia Marçal
Professional Category: Assistant Researcher; Associate Professor (University College London)
Positions within IHA: Board Member – RG Coordinator [Museum Studies] | SC Member | RG Member [Art Theory, Historiography and Criticism]
Thematic areas: Museums, Critical infrastructural theory, Collections care, Activism, Contemporary art
Contact: hp.marcal@gmail.com
CIÊNCIA ID: 771B-1C88-AC94
ORCiD: 0000-0002-0476-5233
Scopus ID: 57194264893
Biography
Hélia Marçal is a researcher at the Art History Institute (NOVA FCSH / IN2PAST). She has published about conservation theory and ethics, embodied memories and the body-archive, and public policies of participation and stewardship of cultural heritage. Her latest publications include the Special Issue on Conservation and Care of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation (as a guest editor), which proposes conservation as a political endeavour. Her recent book project is on posthumanism and collection care practices in museums (under contract with Routledge, expected published date July 2026, co-authored with Dr Rebecca Gordon). She is currently the PI of the FCT- and LISBOA20230-funded project RESONANCE: Epistemologies for Documentation of Affects and Becoming in Cultural Manifestations in Performance (1969-1979) – LISBOA2030-FEDER-00914500 2023.17624.ICDT. Until July 2026, she will also be na Associate Professor at the University College London’s Department of History of Art and the Vice-Dean for the Bicentennial / UCL200 Champion for the Faculty of Social and Historical Sciences.
Prior to these appointments, she was a Visiting Fellow of the Victoria and Albert Research Institute (2024-2025), a Junior researcher at the Institute of Contemporary History (2021-2025, 2020.04286.CEECIND), and a researcher in the project Reshaping the Collectible: When Artworks Live in the Museum (2018-2020). While at Tate, she was also involved in the project Documentation and Conservation of Performance (2016-2021).
Hélia sits on the editorial board of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation and has reviewed articles for several peer-reviewed journals in the fields of visual arts and performing arts, museums and heritage studies and is a Fellow of International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. She was Coordinator of the Working Group on Theory, History and Ethics of Conservation of the Committee for Conservation of the International Council of Museums (ICOM-CC, 2016-2023).
[PT]
Hélia Marçal é investigadora no Instituto de História da Arte (NOVA FCSH / IN2PAST). Publicou sobre teorias e ética da conservação, memórias incorporadas e o corpo arquivo, e políticas públicas de participação e cuidado de património cultural. Entre as suas publicações recentes conta-se número especial intitulado Conservation and Care do Journal of the Institute of Conservation, em que participou como editora convidada e que propõe a conservação como projeto político. O seu projeto monográfico mais recente (publicação esperada para Julho de 2026) discute perspetivas pós-humanistas nas práticas de cuidado de coleções em museus (sob contrato com a Routledge, e em co-autoria com Dr Rebecca Gordon). Neste momento é, também, a Investigadora Responsável do projeto RESONANCE: Epistemologias da Documentação de Formas de Afeto e Devir nas Manifestações Culturais em Performance (1969-1979), apoiado pelo Programa Regional Lisboa 2030, pelo Portugal 2030 e pela União Europeia (LISBOA2030-FEDER-00914500), e co-financiada por fundos nacionais através da FCT — Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P. (2023.17624.ICDT), e, até julho de 2026, acumulará as funções presentes com as Associate Professor no Departamento de História da Arte da University College London e como Vice-Dean for the Bicentennial / UCL200 Champion na Faculty of Social and Historical Sciences da UCL.
Antes de se juntar ao IHA, a Hélia foi Visiting Fellow no Victoria and Albert Research Institute (2024-2025), Investigadora Júnior no Instituto de História Contemporânea (2021-2025, 2020.04286.CEECIND) e investigadora no projeto Reshaping the Collectible: When Artworks Live in the Museum (2018-2020). Enquanto investigadora na Tate, esteve também envolvida no projeto Documentation and Conservation of Performance (2016-2021).
A Hélia faz parte do corpo editorial do Journal of the Institute of Conservation e é ativa como revisora para revistas académicas em várias áreas dentro dos campos expandidos das artes visuais e performativas, museus e património. É, também, por eleição, Fellow of International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works. Foi, ainda, coordenadora do grupo de trabalho em Teoria, História, e Ética da Conservação do Committee for Conservation of the International Council of Museums (ICOM-CC) entre 2016 e 2023.
(data supplied by the researcher)
Abbreviations:
SC – Scientific Council; RG – Research Group