Maria Than

b. 1995, London, UK
Lives and works in London, UK and France

Maria Than is a creative technologist, educator, activist & co-founder of design practice Ricebox Studio. Using AR, moving image and creative AI, she explores themes of fragmented identity, buddhism, mental health and escapism. She exhibited in group shows in London, Paris, New York, Toronto and South Korea with screenings in Amsterdam, New York and San Francisco. In 2021, she became a Fellow at the Royal Society of Arts, an award based on her period activism with Ricebox Studio and AR work. She lectures in graphic design, ethics of AI, emerging technologies and social activism at various UAL campuses, mainly at Central Saint Martins and Camberwell College of Arts, and University of Greenwich and works part-time at Child Rights International Network as a Digital Designer.

She is a Finalist in the LICC awards and her film ‘HOME AGE TO AVALOKITEŚVARA’ will be screened at +RAIN AI Film Festival in Barcelona during Sónar Festival. She was previously a Resident Creative Technologist at AIxDesign during the Story & Code online residency. She is currently the winner and resident artist at arebyte Gallery’s Hotel Generation in London, UK where she launched her first solo art exhibition in 2024 exploring her Vietnamese Buddhist heritage called ‘Homage to Quan Âm’.

BIOGRAPHY INFORMATION FROM SHIFT AND THE ARTIST’S WEBSITE, MAY 2024.