The James Henry Green PhD scholarship is available to students wishing to pursue doctoral research within the Department of Art History at the University of Sussex. The three-year scholarship covers University tuition fees* and an annual book award of £1000.
The scholarship is offered by the James Henry Green Charitable Trust through the James Green Centre for World Art at Royal Pavilion & Museums (RP&M), Brighton & Hove. The purpose of the award is to build and share knowledge about RP&M’s rich holdings of material and visual culture from Africa, Asia, the Pacific and Americas. For this reason the main requirement of the award is that the proposed doctoral research project considers some aspect of the World Art collection. Other requirements include a yearly report and, at some point during the scholarship, a public outcome for staff and visitors to Brighton Museum & Art Gallery (for example a talk, display or web article about the research project). The scholarship-holder is also expected to make a presentation on the subject of their doctoral research to the Trustees of the James Henry Green Charitable Trust at one of their annual general meetings during their tenure of the scholarship.
The World Art collection
The World Art collection is a Designated** collection of over 12,000 objects and images from Africa, Asia, the Pacific and Americas. The collection encompasses objects in a wide range of media and represents many different geographies and time periods; from Peruvian archaeological textiles to late 20th-century barbers’ signboards from Kenya. Many items in the collection were sold or donated by people associated with Britain’s former colonies and so these areas are particularly well represented. West Africa and South and South East Asia, for example, are areas of strength but the collection also includes important and rare material from southern Africa, China, North America and the Pacific.
Possible approaches to a PhD topic
While research proposals which take a traditional object-based approach to the collection will be welcomed, work which situates the material in wider contexts is also encouraged. This might include research which addresses:
- the complex networks of dealers, salerooms and collectors, which, particularly in the late 19th century, enabled museums such as that at Brighton to accumulate collections of ‘non-western’ material
- changing modes for the display and interpretation of ‘non-western’ material culture
- the role of particular individuals in forming collections and displays
- the role of source communities in forming collections: both historically and looking to the future
- the role of historic collections in the context of contemporary cultural politics
- how collections material functioned in its ‘original’ context(s), for example items made for courtly or religious use
- issues of post-colonialism
- issues around gender or class and collecting
Value of the Scholarship
The scholarship will be worth the equivalent amount of the Home/EU fee in the relevant year for full-time students, or pro-rata for part-time students, and will be awarded for three years for full-time students, or for an equivalent or relevant period of time for part-time and current students. There is an additional fund of £1,000 for book purchase for each year of the award. Applications will be judged on academic merit.
Eligibility
Applicants must:
- have been offered a place on a research degree programme in the Department of Art History at Sussex
- submit their research proposal and a statement of personal circumstances with their application
- commence the degree in October 2013 (awards cannot be deferred to subsequent years)
Application procedure
Applications should be made on the James Green Trust Scholarship application form.
Timetable
Deadline 1st May 2013: Applicants notified of the outcome of their application by email soon after.
Further information
For further information on the scholarships please contact:
Fiona Allan
Research and Enterprise Coordinator
School of History, Art History and Philosophy
Arts A, University of Sussex
Falmer
Brighton, BN1 9QN
ENGLAND
Email: F.M.Allan@sussex.ac.uk
The Keeper and Curator of World Art are happy to facilitate access to collections and collections information for those individuals looking to develop a research proposal. Selection of the scholarship-holder will be made by the Department of Art History at the University of Sussex so enquiries regarding application should be made there.
Helen Mears, Keeper of World Art
T: 01273 292863
E: helen.mears@brighton-hove.gov.uk
History of Art , University of Sussex contact:
Michelle O’Malley
Head of Department
T: 01273 877 242
E: m.o-malley@sussex.ac.uk
*International students are welcome to apply for the scholarship but we regret that we can only pay the equivalent of ‘home’ student tuition fees.
** The Designation scheme was launched in 1997 by Resource (now the Museum, Libraries & Archives Council) to identify and celebrate the pre-eminent collections of national and international importance held in England's non-national museums.