PhD Studentship 2019 - Making the Invisible Visible in the Contemporary Art Museum, Tate and UCL Institute of Archaeology, UK

Publish Date: Oct 30, 2018

Deadline: Nov 12, 2018

PhD studentship for doctoral research at Tate and UCL Institute of Archaeology

Tate and UCL Institute of Archaeology invite applications from eligible candidates for a full-time collaborative PhD studentship, funded for 3 years by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to commence in January 2019.

The proposed doctoral research aims to bring new theoretical perspectives to questions about visible and invisible practices in the contemporary art museum. Focusing on the pioneering practice of the Collection Care and Conservation teams at Tate, the research will problematise the proposition that opening up the currently invisible processes of the museum affords greater transparency which in turn promotes greater inclusivity. The doctorate will, therefore, develop new thinking about the implications and impact, including the potential benefits and pitfalls, of making visible the work of the museum that is usually hidden to a general audience. The research will offer a critique of current and historic ways in which hitherto hidden processes have been revealed and provide opportunities to explore new approaches. The keyframing questions of this research will include:

  • How might making visible the private or behind the scenes processes of the museum broaden and diversify the museum’s audiences?
  • How does addressing the invisible and visible relate to current discourses around inclusion and exclusion?
  • What is the potential impact on stakeholders, including galleries and artists, of making visible the work of a contemporary art museum to a general audience?
  • What is at stake in redrawing these boundaries?

The nature of the theoretical perspectives that will be explored within this doctorate will be determined by the successful candidate, however, they might include feminist theory, systems thinking, critical museology and theories about the division of knowledge, situated learning and sociocultural learning theory. The doctoral thesis will have the benefit of interacting with the project team for the research project "Reshaping the Collectible: When Artworks Live in the Museum" as well as staff within the Audiences team at Tate.

Principal supervisor: Dr Theano Moussouri (UCL)
Second supervisor: Professor Pip Laurenson (Head of Collection Care Research, Tate)

Entry criteria

Potential applicants must have a Master’s degree with an overall grade of 70% or better, with at least 70% in the dissertation.

Applicants may come from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds (e.g. sociology, political theory, museum studies, media and communication studies, archaeology, anthropology, cultural studies, conservation, social psychology), but it is expected that the successful candidate will be able to clearly explain the relationship between their existing training and the topic of the studentship, and indicate how their present research interests relate to the proposed topic area. Applicants who have experience of working in the field would be particularly welcome.

To apply

Your application will include:

  • A completed UCL application form for Postgraduate (Research) degrees
  • A curriculum vitae
  • A research proposal
  • Transcripts of relevant studies and – where appropriate – a letter from a course coordinator predicting the expected degree result (for those who still have to complete their current Master’s programme)
  • Two reference letters in sealed and signed envelopes.

All application documents should be sent to Lisa Daniel, ideally hard copy to UCL Institute of Archaeology, 31-34 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PY, UK. Please write on the envelope: Making the Invisible Visible in the Contemporary Art Museum.
Electronic copies can be accepted if you are an overseas applicant, in which case your referees need to email their references to l.daniel@ucl.ac.uk directly.

Only complete applications received, with both references, by the deadline, can be considered.

Please do NOT submit the application via the UCL admissions portal.

Closing date for applications: 12 November 2018
Interview date: 27 November 2018

More information

For informal enquiries relating to the studentship, please contact Dr Theano Moussouri at t.moussouri@ucl.ac.uk. Questions regarding the application process should be addressed to the IoA Postgraduate Admissions Officer Lisa Daniel at l.daniel@ucl.ac.uk.

The successful student will join a large cohort of Collaborative Doctoral award students at Tate, as well as the thriving postgraduate community at the UCL Institute of Archaeology. 

Applicants will normally be restricted to candidates from the UK and EU countries.

The award is subject to the AHRC’s terms, to which applicants should refer before applying (see the Research Funding Guide). The studentship is funded through the AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership programme and includes tuition fees up to the standard Home/EU amount and an annual maintenance grant. The doctoral stipend for 2018/19 has been set at £14,777. Note that overseas students are not eligible for AHRC awards (except under specific circumstances) and EU students need to assess whether they are eligible for fees and maintenance or fees only.

For more information click "LINK TO ORIGINAL" below.
 

This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:

https://www.tate.org.uk/research/studentships/invisible-visible

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