Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Dr. Maria Zavialova received her doctorate in Comparative Cultural Studies from the University of Minnesota. As TMORA’s Curator and Head of Exhibitions & Collections since 2008, she has curated more than one hundred exhibitions at the museum, exploring the intersections of art, history, and culture.

In addition to her curatorial work, Dr. Zavialova writes for art catalogues and academic publications. She is an award-winning translator of African American women’s writing into Russian, a co-director of the folk performance group Nitka, and a board member of the American Siberian Educational Foundation.

Her expertise on Russian and Soviet art has been featured in numerous publications, including The New York Times, which profiled her work at TMORA in an October 2023 article examining the role of Russian art museums amid the war in Ukraine.