Maria Manuela Restivo is an anthropologist, researcher, and curator whose work lies at the intersection of anthropology and heritage studies. Combining theoretical inquiry with documentary and curatorial practices, she focuses on Portuguese folk and vernacular arts and crafts. She graduated in Anthropology from the University of Coimbra, holds a Master’s degree in Museology, and earned a PhD in Heritage Studies / Art History from the University of Porto, supported by an FCT doctoral scholarship (2017–2022). Her professional trajectory includes work in museums and art institutions such as the National Palace of Pena, Galeria Cruzes Canhoto, and the preparation of Viana do Castelo’s bid for European Capital of Culture. In 2016, she founded Arte Popular de Ana a Zé, a platform devoted to the research and documentation of Portuguese folk art, and in 2021 she launched Livros do Alhures, an editorial project designed to connect academic research with broader publics. Across research, exhibitions, and publications, her work engages with folk and vernacular artistic practices, often through collaborations with artists and designers. Her work focuses on three main areas: the documentation and dissemination of Portuguese folk arts; research into non-institutional heritage projects; and the intersections between anthropology and aesthetic analysis. She values modes of knowledge production that extend beyond conventional academic frameworks, with a particular interest in exhibitions, editorial projects, and experimental methods of ethnography. She is currently a junior researcher at CRIA under the CEEC programme [2024–2030].