London/York, October 1, 2015 - October 1, 2018
Application deadline: Apr 27, 2015

Re-displaying the Modern: A History of Art Exhibitions, Artistic Networks and Institutions in the Middle East and North Africa 1947–1989

The Department of History of Art at the University of York in
partnership with Tate invites applications for a PhD studentship
fully-funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council to commence in
October 2015.

This doctoral research project focuses on the institutional history of
modern art practices in the Middle East and North Africa between 1947
and 1989. While revisionist narratives have brought into view previously
neglected spatial and temporal networks, art historical scholarship
tends to overlook the fact that artworks today praised as ‘discoveries'
in the West belong to a local narrative of a pre-globalised history of
art and exhibitions. This project thus aims to provide a critical
framework to map the development of galleries, festivals, biennials,
journals and other platforms for artistic exchange in the region. The
dominant historiographies of modernist art have, until recently, ignored
art from the Middle East or cast it as derivative of its European
sources. The successful candidate will thus be encouraged to engage
broadly with institutional practices across the region and to frame the
project in such a way that it re-evaluates the adoption and adaption of
modernist paradigms.

Some of the following questions might frame the proposed thesis. What
institutions served to exhibit and disseminate modern artistic projects
in the Middle East in the second half of the twentieth century? How did
these institutions, and the artists working in them, negotiate the
tensions between the local and global, nationalism and cosmopolitanism,
political engagement and artistic autonomy, and popular and avant-garde
art trajectories? How might a map of the institutional links between
artists working in cities such as Baghdad, Beirut, Cairo, Jerusalem,
Istanbul and Tehran necessitate a rethinking of the nation-state as a
framework through which to understand artistic production in the region?

We would encourage researchers to examine art exhibitions, biennials and
festivals as they intersect with the history of avant-garde groups, art
movements and political alliances of their time, including but not
limited to: Al-Nahda's cultural Renaissance in early twentieth-century
Lebanon and Syria; the Egyptian Art and Freedom group in the 1930s; the
Baghdad Modern Art Group formed in 1951 by Jawad Salim; the Union of
Arab Plastic Artists that gathered throughout the 1970s between
Damascus, Rabat and Baghdad, where the first Arab Biennale was held in
1974; the Shiraz-Persepolis Festival of the Arts in Iran; and the Asilah
festival in Morocco in 1978.

The PhD supervisors are Dr Chad Elias (University of York) and Morad
Montazami (Research Curator, Middle East and North Africa, Tate). The
student may be based in London and will examine the histories of works
of modern Middle Eastern and North African art within Tate's collection,
utilising the museum's records, as part of his or her thesis. The
student will produce c.40 summary texts about individual artworks in
Tate's collection for publication on Tate's website, following existing
guidelines, or a smaller number of related texts, such as catalogue
entries. Such texts will relate closely to the themes and areas that the
student is researching, and the experience of writing for a broad public
about the works will provide valuable training. The student will be
asked to share research findings with staff at Tate, both informally and
formally through seminars and a range of possible publishing outcomes
with Tate. The assembling of documents relating to the history of art in
the region could be a further valuable outcome of the doctoral project.

Candidates should have a strong interest in modern art from the Middle
East and North Africa. It is also desirable that they have a strong
grounding in postcolonial theory, cultural studies, visual culture or
political histories of the region (comparative studies and transnational
approaches may be also privileged). The successful applicant will have
excellent command of English, spoken and written, and experience with
independent archival research. Written and spoken fluency in one of the
major languages of the region (Arabic, Farsi or Turkish) is highly
desirable.

The AHRC doctoral award does not include funds for travel but please
note that the student will be able to apply for external grants that
would help to enable travel in the region.

The deadline for applications is 27 April 2015.

Entry criteria
We invite applications from candidates with a strong academic background
in modern art or cultural history of the Middle East and North Africa,
showing evidence of archival research skills and a clear and engaging
research proposal that can be developed through the available research
supervision. The candidate must have excellent command of English,
spoken and written, and show evidence of an ability to write about
artworks for a specialist and non-specialist audiences in an engaging
and accessible way. The successful candidate would also ideally have
working knowledge of one of the major languages used in the region.

Successful applicants normally have a good first degree (at least 2.1,
or international equivalent) in a relevant field of humanities, and have
obtained, or are currently working towards a Masters degree at Merit or
Distinction level, or international equivalent. If English is not a
candidate's native language, he or she will also need to satisfy the
English language entry requirements of the Department of History of Art
at the University of York
(http://www.york.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/apply/english/).

Please note that the award is subject to the AHRC's terms, to which
applicants should refer before applying (see the AHRC's Research Funding
Guide:
http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Training%20Grant%20Funding%20Guide%202014-15.pdf

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. Details of
current maintenance and fee rates can be found on the ‘Current Research
Awards' page on the AHRC website
(http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/Funding-Opportunities/Postgraduate-funding/Pages/Current-award-holders.aspx)

To apply
Applications should be made in the first instance by email to the
University of York and should include the following documents as
electronic attachments:

- A covering letter, stating why you are applying for this opportunity
and why you think your academic interests qualify you for this award.
- A curriculum vitae.
- A transcript of your qualifications to date (and anticipated results
if still studying for an MA).
- One or more relevant writing samples (e.g. MA essay or dissertation;
published articles; images may be omitted if the document is too large
otherwise to send by email).
- Contact details for two referees.

Applications should be directed to the Postgraduate Administrator in the
Department of History of Art at the University of York, Susanna Broom
(susanna.broom@york.ac.uk). The successful candidate will, at a later
stage, be required to formally submit a programme application via the
University of York's online application system.

The closing date is 5.00pm on Monday, 27 April 2015. We will interview
candidates for this studentship on 14 May 2015 at Tate Britain in
London.

The University of York will contact the referees of shortlisted
applicants, who should email their references in the form of a letter to
Susanna Broom (susanna.broom@york.ac.uk) by 5 May 2015. Referees should
email their references from their institutional email accounts
(references sent from personal/private email accounts will not be
accepted unless in the form of a scanned document on institutional
headed paper and signed by the referee).

More information
If you have any queries or would like to discuss this opportunity before
applying, please contact Dr Elias (chad.elias@york.ac.uk) or Morad
Montazami at Tate (morad.montazami@tate.org.uk).
If you have any queries regarding the application process, please
contact Susanna Broom (susanna.broom@york.ac.uk)
Visit http://www.york.ac.uk/history-of-art/prospective-postgraduates for
more information about the Department of History of Art at the
University of York.