Michele A. Hardy

Michele A. Hardy is a cultural anthropologist based at the University of Calgary in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She serves as a curator with the university's Nickle Galleries and teaches Museum and Heritage Studies.

Her research interests focus on Cultural Anthropology, Museum Studies, Heritage Studies, Women's Studies, Textile Studies, Ethnography, and South Asian Studies.

Hardy's scholarly work examines the intersection of women's history, embroidery, and cultural identity, with particular focus on Kutch, India. Her publications explore how textile practices shape women's experiences and cultural expressions across generations.

Her notable publications include Embroidered Relations in Kutch: Women, Stitching and the Third Space (2013) and The Embodied Embroiderer: Crafting Bodies in India (2010), which investigate the relationship between craft practices and women's lived experiences in India, examining how embroidery functions as both cultural expression and social practice.

Dr. Hardy actively participates in academic conferences related to heritage studies, including presenting on 'Fashion and Anti-Fashion along the Rann,' and attending sessions on museum practices, difficult knowledge in public spaces, and heritage as an agent of change.