Dr Lisa McDonald
Lecturer in Museum and Heritage Studies
Biography
I am an art historian and curator who joined the School of Art History in 2025 as Lecturer in Museum and Heritage Studies. Prior to this, I was Post-Doctoral Research Associate with the UKRI funded One Ocean Hub, then Subject Lead in Design Innovation and Future Heritage, both at the Glasgow School of Art.
I have a PhD in Art History from the Sainsbury Research Unit for the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas at the University of East Anglia, along with a Master of Art Curatorship and a Bachelor of Arts, each from the University of Melbourne. I have held curatorial, collection management and advisory roles at museums, galleries and heritage organisations in Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea.
Research areas
My research focuses on the arts and cultures of the western South Pacific. Since being invited to work at the Vanuatu Cultural Centre in 2008, my practice has expanded to include Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. I am particularly interested in contemporary art, museological collections, sustainable development and cultural rights. My research also encompasses the anthropology of art, postcolonial studies and participatory research methods. I am currently co-authoring and co-editing a book that examines the role of art in expressing indigenous relationships with the ocean in Africa and the South Pacific. In addition, I have a forthcoming co-authored chapter (with Stuart Jeffrey) in the Routledge Handbook of Heritage and Ethics that discusses best practice in relation to academic-community collaborations.