Coming from an artistic background, Marie Christine van der Sman chose a career in the museum world after studying history and museology. She was director of the Hague Historical Museum, Museum Meermanno, the NAGO and the Museon, among others. Two common threads run through her life: heritage and graphic design. At Museum Meermanno and the NAGO, she saved many archives of graphic designers from destruction and made them digitally accessible. Her legacy is largely invisible because exhibitions are temporary and collections are stored (safely) in depots. But preserving design archives of important Dutch designers does happen for eternity, so that later generations can learn and enjoy them.