Maria J. Cruz

museums + culture

Maria holds a Masters in Museum Studies from the University of Toronto and spent the last three years working for Commonwealth Historic Resources Management Limited as a Cultural Planner. There she gained a deep understanding of good consultant practices on a wide range of projects and is now striking out on her own.

Maria took on a variety of roles for Commonwealth on projects throughout BC: high-level strategic plans for museums and cultural precincts, interpretive plans, culture and heritage strategies, municipal cultural policy, as well as museums collections reviews, and historical research on heritage buildings and heritage areas in general. Projects were completed for both private and public clients alike – such as the City of Vancouver, City of Surrey, Campbell River, Revelstoke, and Dawson Creek. Her work involved everything from database management, oral history interviews, archival research, exhibit development and text writing, to community consultation workshops, site fieldwork and artifact conservation.

Other museums+culture experience includes:

• Design Team project manager for the 2004/05 exhibition Wish You Were Here: A City and Its Souvenirs, at Spadina Museum: Historic House and Gardens in conjunction with the City of Toronto’s Culture Division
• Museu Nacional de Arqueologia, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Lisbon, Portugal, researcher and tour guide
• Vancouver Art Gallery, animateur and researcher

As a consultant Maria is offering her museums+culture
expertise in the areas of:

Maria is a firm supporter of the important role that museums have had, and should continue to have as venues for dialogue: about the past, informing the present, and for planning the future. She is a supporter of the larger arts community throughout her professional work and as a volunteer. Her fascination for history and culture is what has inspired her to bring it alive for others throughout her work - which is always rooted in academic excellence.

Whether you need help with your museums' collections; the research, development and writing of an exhibit, or want an interpretive eye for your heritage and/or culture project, Maria has an exceptional and professional skill set to work with your unique needs.

Recent projects:

In July 2009 Maria was contracted by the City of Richmond to take in a private donor collection. Work included the accessioning, condition reporting/initial assessment, photographing, tagging and transporting of over 300 artifacts in the Helmet Eppich Collection.

 

 

Maria was retained as collections analyst and database manager by Commonwealth for the Vancouver Maritime Museum Project, which involved the analysis, classification, and deaccession recommendations for the maritime collection held by the City of Vancouver.

 

 

Maria researched, wrote and procured archival maps and photographs for a series of historical panels located on an outdoor public walkway along a section of the Fraser River off South West Marine Drive in Vancouver. This work was completed for Progressive Construction for the City of Vancouver under Commonwealth.

 

 

To check out Maria's blog about art, culture and museums log onto www.museumsculture.blogspot.com