Maria Dermitzaki (°1973, Heraklio, Greece) is a lighting designer, photographer and author.
She has a Postgraduate diploma in Theatre lighting design from Central School of Speech and Drama (London) and a diploma in Photography from Leica Academy (Athens).
Over the past 15 years she has created the lighting for theatre, dance, music and opera, in Europe including Belgium, Greece, England, France and Switzerland. Lately she designed the lighting for a historical monument in Greece, the ancient Agora of Argos.
She has also worked as lighting director for different theater and dance festivals and international touring companies. Recently, she has been collaborating with the Peter Brook Company and La Fabrique Imaginaire.
As a photographer she has developed her personal style in colour photography. Her pictures have been awarded prizes in various competitions. For several years she taught photography to teenagers with psychosomatic disabilities at different institutes in Athens. A book with the work of her students has been published in 2005 by the municipality of Athens.
Her parallel interest in old private photography and oral history took her to the research around immaterial historical heritage. This research led to the publication of the book 'Potamies... Images and memories' that was financed by the municipality of Heraklion in Crete, 2005.
In 2006 she moved in Brussels where she created and set up the social historical project 'Grieken in Limburg', commissioned and financed by the Flemish ministry of culture and heritage. It comprises a book that presents the path of the Greek migration in Limburg, a testimonial documentary and a large photographic and historical exhibition.
Maria Dermitzaki currently lives in Brussels with her family and works on artistic projects in various countries in Europe.