Maria Emanuel Albergaria (Ponta Delgada, 1962) studied Visual Arts, Social Anthropology, and Educational Sciences. She taught primary school at various institutions in Portugal from 1989 to 2006 and collaborated on children’s television programs Rua Sésamo and Ícaro from 1990 to 1991. She directed the film O Rapto dos Gêmeos das Cavernas, which won the 1st Prize at Festival Nacional de Vídeo Escolar in 1996.
She led an art workshop in the women’s wing of Ponta Delgada prison from 2003 to 2005 and coordinated the Educational Program at the Carlos Machado Museum from 2006 to 2011, where she developed the project Museu Móvel (Mobile Museum). In 2011, she created the art installation Uma Casa na Floresta in Ponta Delgada and the video Fuga na Floresta. She was part of the educational team at the National Museum of Natural History and Science (MUNHAC) from 2011 to 2013.
From 2013 to 2018, she coordinated the Intangible Cultural Heritage team at the Carlos Machado Museum, developing community art projects including Caminhos do Chá, Sete Cidades—Para Além da Paisagem, and Para que o Céu Não Nos Caia em Cima da Cabeça. She served as a technical advisor at the National Council of Education (CNE) from 2018 to 2019 and has been part of the Plano Nacional das Artes team since 2019.
She contributed to the editorial projects Laudalino da Ponte Pacheco, 1963-1975 and Chá nos Açores, uma tarde na Gorreana, published by Araucária. She co-curated the exhibition Laudalino da Ponte Pacheco, o fotógrafo que estava lá at the Carlos Machado Museum in 2024.