In Memoriam: Ioanna Kakoulli, 57, Materials Conservation Scientist and UCLA Professor

Ioanna Kakoulli, a professor of materials science and engineering at the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering, died Jan. 1, 2026, in her home country of Cyprus after a prolonged battle with colon cancer. She was 57.

An influential scholar in the study and conservation of ancient artistic and cultural materials, Kakoulli was widely respected across the international materials science and conservation communities. Her research focused on the science of archaeological materials and ancient technologies, forensic archaeology, the creation of new materials inspired by the mechanical and optical properties of ancient material culture, and the sustainability of biocultural heritage. Her interest in classical and Hellenistic painting materials led to seminal publications on ancient wall paintings, and her work encompassed the cultural output of ancient civilizations around the globe, including those of Egypt, China and Indigenous societies of South America.

At UCLA, Kakoulli was co-director of the Molecular and Nano Archaeology Laboratory and a founding member of the UCLA/Getty Interdepartmental Program in the Conservation of Cultural Heritage, where she held a joint appointment. Her research shed new light on ancient technologies and contributed to innovations in spectral imaging and forensic analysis of material culture.

“Ioanna was a dedicated teacher, an excellent scholar, a generous collaborator and a compassionate mentor,” said Ah-Hyung “Alissa” Park, the Ronald and Valerie Sugar Dean of UCLA Samueli. “Her passing is a profound loss to our school, to UCLA and to everyone who knew her. Her legacy will live on through the excellence of her work, her students and the many lives she touched.”

‘A devoted scholar, mentor and colleague’

Kakoulli advised more than 40 master’s and doctoral students across UCLA Samueli and the College’s Division of Social Sciences, under which the UCLA/Getty program resides. Her long-standing seminar, Materials Structure and Technology in Archaeology and Architecture (MAT SCI 33W), introduced students to the science underlying ancient materials — from vitreous glazes and ceramic composites to pigments and mortars — and encouraged them to think like materials detectives, reverse-engineering historical artifacts to understand how and why they endure.

“She was a devoted scholar, mentor and colleague, and she will be remembered for her kindness, dedication and the lasting impact she had on those who had the privilege to work with her,” said Yang Yang, professor and chair of the UCLA Materials Science and Engineering Department.

UCLA
Kakoulli documents the condition of Byzantine and Post-Byzantine wall paintings in the caves of the St. Neophytos Monastery near Paphos, Cyprus.

Born Sept. 6, 1968, in Paphos, Cyprus, Kakoulli grew up on the Mediterranean island, where her lifelong interest in art conservation began. She received a diploma in conservation of painting in 1986 from the Istituto per l’Arte e il Restauro in Florence, Italy, and an advanced certificate in the conservation of mural painting in 1990 from the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property in Rome. She later moved to the U.K. for graduate study, earning a postgraduate diploma in the conservation of mural painting and a master of arts in the microanalysis of paint materials from the Courtauld Institute of Art at the University of London in 1994. In 1999, she earned her doctorate from the University of Oxford, specializing in the technology of ancient paints.

Kakoulli returned to the Courtauld Institute as a postdoctoral fellow and lecturer before serving as a senior lecturer in conservation science at the University of Malta for five years. She joined UCLA’s faculty in January 2005 as an assistant professor and became a full professor in 2015. She chaired the UCLA/Getty interdepartmental program from 2011 to 2017. Among her many contributions to the program were the establishment of the Lore and Gerald Cunard Chair endowment, the Kahn Foundation endowment and the Ph.D. program in the conservation of material culture.

A lasting impact on UCLA and the art conservation community

“Ioanna was a key figure in building the program into what it is today,” said Glenn Wharton, a UCLA professor of art history and chair of the conservation interdepartmental program. “She will be greatly missed at UCLA and within the broader community devoted to the conservation, protection and research of cultural materials.”

Throughout her career at UCLA, Kakoulli held multiple Academic Senate roles for more than a decade, including serving as chair of the Graduate Council and a member of the Executive Board. In 2022–23, she was acting director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture. At UCLA Samueli, she served on the school’s Faculty Executive Committee and was the inclusive excellence officer in the Materials Science and Engineering Department.

She was a visiting professor at MIT, a board member of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute, and a scientific expert for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the International Atomic Energy Agency. Her work also led to collaborations with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on investigations involving the illicit importation of antiquities.

Kakoulli was preceded in death by her father, Petrakis, and is survived by her mother, Nadina Kakoulli; her husband, Giorgos Bayadas; her stepdaughter, Calypso Bayadas; and her siblings, Tatiana Sarafi and Christoforos Kakoulli. A funeral service was held in Cyprus Jan. 3. UCLA Samueli will host a celebration of life in her honor Feb. 19.