Professor Maria Lonsdale

Profile

In 1996 I received a 4-year degree (Licenciatura) in Visual Communication from ESAD, Matosinhos, Portugal. In 2006 I received my PhD from the Department of Typography and Graphic Communication, University of Reading, UK. I had a seven-year career break from academia and then joined the School of Design at the University of Leeds in January 2015.

I am a Professor of Information and Communication Design and have experience of teaching design theory and practice, and research methods for design in higher education, both in Portugal and in the UK since 1997. I have also worked as a design practitioner since 1996, having established my own design studio in partnership at the time.

My main areas of research are Communication Design and Graphic Design and Information Design and Typographic Design. My research is notable in the field of Design for its interdisciplinary nature, with collaboration across sectors such as Healthcare, National and Global Security and Education. My research is also notable in the field of Design for its research based user-centred approach using a wide range of research methods including; focus groups, interviews, questionnaires and surveys, co-design, usability testing and iteration, experimental studies that test, evaluate and validate design solutions to particular problems encountered in real-life contexts. At its core, my research focuses on the effective use of design to improve user performance and wellbeing.

I was the Head of School of Design between 2020-2026.I am the founder of PACE - Professional Academy for Creative Enterprise, and was the Director of PACE until 2026. PACE delivers innovative professional education, creative production and expert consultancy tailored to organisations and professionals worldwide

I am the co-founder of the consortium of 3 universities now publishing the prestigious international peer-reviewed Design journal Visible Language (first published in 1967): University of Leeds, UK; University of Cincinnati, US; and North Carolina State University, US. I was the Editor-in-Chief for Visible Language in 2025 and Editor-in-Chief for the equally prestigious Information Design Journal (first published in 1979) in 2020-2024. I am also reviewer for other peer-reviewed design journals such She Ji: The Journal of Design, Economics, and Innovation, as well as journals beyond the field of Design, such as Journal of Eye Movement Research. I am a regular manuscript reviewer for publishers such as Sage, Routledge (Taylor & Francis) and Bloomsbury.

I am Academic Advisor for Luto, a leading global health communications and testing company.

I was awarded Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) as a recognition for my seniority and contribution to high quality teaching and student learning. I was also awarded Member of the International Society of Typographic Designers (MISTD) as recognition for my professional ability as designer and academic.

Research interests

Design to Inform | the importance of design and visualisation to make information easy to access, simple to use and inclusive.

Design to Instruct | the importance of design to help people process, learn and retain information, and transfer it to specific situations.

Design for Healthcare | the importance of design to make health information clear and facilitate communication between health professionals and patients.

Design for Security | the importance of design to improve how security information is handled and communicated inside agencies, as well as the importance of design to inform and instruct the public about security issues (e.g. cyber security awareness, hygiene and good practice).

Design for Education | the importance of design to enhance and innovate teaching and learning materials, as well as to improve student experience and satisfaction in traditional learning & virtual learning environments.

Design for Reading | the importance of typographic legibility for reading strategies such as search reading, skimming, and scanning.

Design for the user/people | the importance of designing with the user/people by employing methods such as co-design/participatory design, and for the user/people by employing methods such as usability testing, eye-tracking, performance testing.

Qualifications

• PhD | Typography and Graphic Communication | University of Reading, UK
• Licenciatura | Visual Communication Design | ESAD, Portugal

Professional memberships

• SFHEA | Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
• MISTD | Member of the International Society of Typographic Designers
• Academic Advisor | Luto [Health communications and testing company]
• Member of the Design Research Society
• Member of the Information Design Association

Current postgraduate researchers

• Ruizhi Wang
• Fanke Feng
• Xin Hu