Maria Ragan

Maria has worked in the museum sector since 1984, beginning her career at the British Museum as Head of Information Services and later contributing to the design team for the landmark Great Court development. In 1999, she joined the Horniman Museum as Head of Exhibitions and Design, overseeing a diverse programme of displays and interpretive projects. In 2014, she became Head of the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology at UCL, leading strategic and curatorial initiatives for one of the world’s most important collections of Egyptian antiquities.

Since September 2018, Maria has served as Director of St Barbe Museum and Art Gallery in the New Forest, guiding the museum’s vision and programming while deepening its community and regional impact.

Throughout her career, Maria has developed and led major partnership projects with institutions including the Wellcome Collection, Kew Gardens, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Natural History Museum, the British Museum, Kelvingrove Museum, Museon in The Hague, Central St Martins, Random International and Bompas & Parr.

Maria is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and has held a range of advisory and governance roles across the sector. These include serving on the Executive Committee of ICOM UK, the Arts Council England Accreditation Committee and as a Trustee of the National Jazz Archive and The Exhibitions Group. She is also an experienced mentor and regularly delivers training in exhibition interpretation to students and professionals in Museum Studies, archives and related fields.