Mary Michailidou

Mary Michailidou, whose father was from the Agrapha Mountains and mother from Mt Pelion, was born in Volos on 28 October 1940.

She holds degrees in archaeology and history from the Faculty of Arts of Athens University and in art history and archaeology (DES) from the Faculty of Arts of Toulouse University, France. She has undergone advanced training in administration at the International Institute of Public Administration (IIAP) in Paris; in European cultural institutions in Athens, Brussels and Paris; and in the general operating framework of museums in the United States.

She has taught in secondary education, worked at the St Raymond Museum in Toulouse, collaborated with the Ministry to the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Culture in Athens (archaeological service, fine arts, vernacular culture), and served as Director of the National Gallery.

Mary Michailidou was commissioner for the primary projects ‘Silk Roads’ (UNESCO) and ‘Mani - Cultural Itinerary’ and ‘The Museum World’ (Goulandris-Horn Foundation). She has taken part in meetings on the cultural heritage and artistic creation arranged by international organisations (UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, the European Union), and has herself organised conferences and meetings in Greece.

Ms Michailidou designed the curriculum for the training of cultural attaches in the National School of Public Administration, and was in charge of the course throughout the period in which it operated. She is artistic consultant to a number of cultural foundations and associations. She takes part in discussions, delivers lectures, papers and presentations in Greece and other countries, and contributes to the Press and the other mass media.

Mary Michailidou is the author of numerous pieces of legislation and sets of regulations on cultural matters, and has compiled proposals for long-term policy in the world of culture. She has organised many museums and collections in various parts of Greece, and has been curator of important exhibitions and cultural events in Greece and other countries.

Her primary research work in the cultural field included the first programmes in Greece for the electronic recording of museum exhibits and for the creation of industrial archaeology archives.

She serves on the Boards of Management of cultural organisations, foundations and collections and on the special EU committee for the selection of art-works to be installed in the new Council building in Brussels. She is also a member of the AICA, of the Association for Thessalian Studies and of many ‘Friends of the Museum’ associations. In January 1995, she was elected President of the Association of Greek Art Critics and Historians (AICA Hellas).