Ana Souto

Dr. Ana Souto is a Senior Lecturer in Architecture at Nottingham Trent University's School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment. She plays a key role in developing and leading research modules across undergraduate and postgraduate architecture courses, while also serving as the Post Graduate Research Tutor at School level since 2019. Dr. Souto has been with Nottingham Trent University since 2007, initially as a Part-time Lecturer before becoming a Senior Lecturer.

Her research interests focus on architecture as a cultural manifestation of national identity, with particular expertise in post-revolutionary Mexican architecture, the 1929 Iberoamerican Exhibition in Seville, and memorial museums in Berlin. Dr. Souto's work explores the complex relationships between architecture, memory, heritage, and identity through participatory methodologies and interdisciplinary approaches. She is particularly interested in how communities engage with and shape their built environment, and how architecture can serve as a medium for expressing cultural identity.

Dr. Souto's scholarly output shows a consistent focus on the intersections of identity, memory, and architecture across different cultural contexts. Her recent work has expanded into exploring liminal spaces in conflict zones like Cyprus, examining how participatory art and architectural research can contribute to understanding place-making and belonging in divided territories. The Creative Centre for Fluid Territories (CCFT), which she co-founded, represents a significant evolution in her research methodology, emphasizing nomadic dialogue and interdisciplinary collaboration.

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA)
• Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA)
• Section Editor for Museum and Society journal
• Reviewer for multiple academic journals including Res Mobilis, Review of European Studies, and Architecture and Culture

Dr. Souto supervises PhD and Professional Doctorate students in the areas of Architecture, Identity, Heritage and Memory. She serves as Course Leader for the Professional Doctorate Programme and has been involved in significant grant applications as an assessor for organizations including the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) in Portugal, the British Council's Newton Fund, and the Independent Social Research Foundation (ISRF). Her external activities include serving on committees such as the Carrington Street Area Townscape Heritage Scheme Grants Panel and the Nottingham Roman Catholic Diocesan Trustees Historic Churches Committee.

As a core member of the Creative Centre for Fluid Territories (CCFT), Dr. Souto collaborates with international artistic researchers, architects, designers and cultural theorists from England, Scotland, Norway and Cyprus. The CCFT employs practice-based research methods that exploit the creative intersection between image and text, presented through performance, publication, installation, and architectural interventions. Their key methodology involves Travelling Colloquia and Nomadic Dialogues as strategies to explore the meaning of 'place' from different locations, perspectives, and across time.