Maria Gough

Maria Gough is the Joseph Pulitzer, Jr. Professor of Modern Art in Harvard University's Department of History of Art and Architecture, with prior appointments at the University of Michigan and Stanford University. She has served as Director of Graduate Studies and Interim Chair at Harvard, contributing significantly to academic leadership.

Her educational background includes:

• Law, philosophy, and history of art studies at the University of Melbourne (1987)
• MA in History of Art from Johns Hopkins University (1991)
• PhD in History of Art and Architecture from Harvard University (1997)

Gough's research centers on early 20th-century European art, with pioneering work on Russian/Soviet avant-gardes, Weimar aesthetics, and French modernism. She investigates abstraction, para-architecture, and photography through political and colonial lenses, recently expanding to examine textiles produced by women in modern art. Her scholarship bridges historical avant-garde practices with contemporary concerns about empire and representation.

Her 2020-2022 publications reveal a sustained engagement with Constructivism, Bauhaus pedagogy, and Soviet photographic utopias, demonstrating methodological range from graphic design history to cross-cultural portraiture. These works collectively analyze how political ideologies shaped visual production across media and geographies.

Her scholarly impact is recognized through major awards:

• Paul Mellon Predoctoral Fellowship (CASVA, 1992-1995)
• Getty Grant Program fellowship (2000-2001)
• Clark Art Institute fellowship (2001)
• Radcliffe Institute fellowship (2011-2012)
• Guggenheim Fellowship (2015-2016)
• Graham Foundation grant (2017)

Gough actively shapes the field through editorial roles at Modernism/modernity, Power Publications, and Grey Room, plus advisory service at the National Gallery's CASVA (2020-2023). Her teaching innovates with courses like 'Modern Art and Its Colonial Matrix' and seminars exploring textiles' role in abstraction. She currently advances two book projects on Klucis' drawings and Soviet photographic tourism.