Sophie Makariou, Scientific Director for Culture and Heritage, AFALULA, is a Senior Curator and Director with 30 years of experience. A graduate of the École du Louvre, of the Institut National des Langues et Civilization Orientales and of the EHESS Paris, she joined the Department of Oriental Antiquities at the Musée du Louvre in 1994. There, she launched the Islamic Art Department, and, as Its Director she oversaw its new wing open in 2012. The following year, she was appointed CEO and Chair of the Musée Guimet - National Museum of Asian Art in Paris, where she introduced in its cultural programming a contemporary art cycle called “Carte blanches,” inviting artists such as Chiharu Shiota of Japan to respond to the collection. Makariou has published many books and studies on art and culture, from Islamic to Asian art, and from heritage to contemporary creation.