Category: Museum Anthropology Blog

Philbrook Museum of Art seeks applications for a two-year appointment (renewable up to one year) as Mellon Fellow for Native Art. The Fellow will join a robust curatorial team focused on Native and contemporary art, with one curator dedicated to Native art, and three devoted to collaborations with contemporary art and artists. Twenty-first-century art—especially including Native art—is a cornerstone of the Museum’s program, which includes acquisitions, commissions, and exhibitions as well as innovative forms of engagement with artists, the institution, and our community.

The Mellon Fellow for Native Art will play an important role in this vital program intended to expand the canon of contemporary art beyond the boundaries of traditional Western narratives. Working in collaboration with the curatorial team and under the supervision of the Curator of Native American Art, the Mellon Fellow will undertake research in preparation for a major exhibition drawn from the collection. Additionally, the Fellow will participate in planning ongoing collection reinstallations, develop and present one to two public programs each year, and partner with Native artists and communities across North America on collection and exhibition-related research.

More here.

The Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art plays an active role at Northwestern University, a leading research university situated in the Greater Chicago area. The museum presents a rigorous and diverse program that reaches across time, place, culture, and media; acting as a convener for interdisciplinary conversations; being an innovative “third space” for teaching and learning; and collaborating with and supporting faculty and students.

The Block seeks a curatorial research fellow for an exhibition focusing on the Indigenous art history of Chicago, which has received a two-year research and development grant from the Terra Foundation for American Art as part of their Art Design Chicago 2024 initiative.

The Terra Foundation Curatorial Research Fellow will work in collaboration with a team of three curators.

This project takes a deliberate approach to recounting an underappreciated art history of Chicago from Native American perspectives. Chicago sits on the homelands of the Council of the Three Fires: Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa; as well as the Menominee, Miami, and Ho-Chunk nations. The site has long been a cultural and economic hub for Indigenous peoples and is currently home to a diverse Native community. With this acknowledgement as a critical reference and call to action, The Block’s project will explore the confluences that have shaped and continue to shape Indigenous creative practices in Chicago, putting the past in conversation with the past. We will develop Indigenous Chicago through a collaborative, decolonizing process that upholds Indigenous curatorial methodologies of inclusivity, reciprocity, and research shaped by community priorities.

This is the first two-year term of what is anticipated to be a four-year project.  Renewal for a second term is dependent on grant funding.  During the first term the focus will be on research and development.  The ideal candidate will have a background in Native American Studies and experience with undertaking multidisciplinary research. Residency in the Chicagoland area is preferred and will be required once on-site work and research resumes as Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.

More here.

Via The New York Times, March 31, 2021

“Nearly a year after the postponement of a Philip Guston retrospective roiled the art world, some of the modernist painter’s controversial paintings of cartoonish Ku Klux Klan figures will be displayed in New York in September.

Hauser & Wirth, which represents the Guston estate, will exhibit the paintings from the artist’s Klansmen series as part of “Philip Guston, 1969-1979.” The exhibition will run from Sept. 9 to Oct. 30 in their New York gallery and will showcase work from the final decade of his career. (Guston died in 1980.)

The timing “is urgent because of the art’s relevance to our cultural context today,” Marc Payot, the president of the gallery, said in an email on Wednesday, though he said the show was not organized in response to the postponement of the Guston retrospective at four major museums last year.

Mr. Payot mentioned the “racial reckoning and widespread calls for social justice” after the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylorlast summer, and how they “echo the context in which Guston made these late works.””

More here.

Position Summary

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art recognizes the colonial history of American art and American museums. As a cultural institution, we have a responsibility to engage with dismantling historical and systemic invisibility of Indigenous peoples past, present, and future. We intentionally hold ourselves accountable to appropriate conversations, representations, connections, and education to facilitate measureable change.

To assist in this important and long-term work supported by the institution, Crystal Bridges seeks a Curator of Native American Art to guide the evolving vision and strategic planning for Native American Art at the museum in dialogue with American Art. Building on the museum’s collaborations with Indigenous communities, exhibitions such as Art for a New Understanding: Native Voices 1950s to Now, collaborations with the University of Arkansas, and collections, including recent acquisitions by Native American artists, and the holdings of the University of Arkansas, the Curator will continue to meaningfully develop the Native American art collection and program. A sustained commitment to this challenging work is key to this position.

As Crystal Bridges expands and grows, the Curator must help to build and sustain relationships with tribal leaders and Indigenous communities regionally and nationally as well as with Native consultants and advisors, professional organizations, area museums—including the Museum of Native American History located in Bentonville, and the academic community, including the expanding School of Art and graduate program in art history at the University of Arkansas. With support from the Chief Curator, the Curator of American Art and Director of Fellowships and Research and the curatorial team more broadly, the curator will position Native American art as vital to American art and history and central to expanding the field. The Curator will engage with a wide range of Native American and Indigenous art from what is now known as the United States, consulting and guiding conversations about ancient, historic, modern and contemporary art. The Curator will seize opportunities to be creative and experimental as well as flexible, innovative and collaborative to help develop new methodologies for interpretation and exhibition of Native American art at Crystal Bridges. The Curator will form a collection assessment and development plan for Native American art, cultivate and steward donors, supporters and stakeholders, and help foster broad public engagement with Native and American art

More here.

“Truth and Responsibility” – the American Anthropology Association’s 2021 Annual Meeting will take place in Baltimore, MD, November 17-21. This year’s meeting will be hybrid with options for both in-person and virtual attendance. It is our hope that this approach will broaden learning opportunities and also allow members to safely network and reconnect with colleagues from across the country. 

The General Call for Participation is now open. If you submitted last year, your submission will be waiting in the portal for edits and resubmission. Previously submitted proposals must be resubmitted in the system before this year’s deadline. All new proposals must be started by3 p.m. EDT on Friday, May 21st and completed by 3 p.m. on Wednesday, May 26th.

Submit to the Call for Participation

The call for special events (e.g., board/committee meetings) will open in early June. Please stay tuned as details are still being finalized with Section and Executive Board leadership. 

Workshops will be entirely virtual, and hosted separately from the Annual Meeting, just as they were following Raising Our Voices in 2020. A separate call will open later this year, with workshops taking place in December. 

Safety is our paramount concern. We will scrupulously follow public health guidance and our evaluation of the situation will continue right up to and through the Annual Meeting.

The Council for Museum Anthropology (CMA), a section of the American Anthropological Association, recognizes innovative and influential contributions to the field of museum anthropology.

There are four categories of awards:

Distinguished Service Award (2021 deadline: Aug 1)
Michael M. Ames Award (2021 deadline: Aug 1)
Student Travel Awards (2021 deadline: Aug 31)

2021 Annual Awards

CMA award applications and nominations for the Ames, Distinguished Service, and Student Travel Awards must be submitted as digital data (Word documents, pdf files and/or jpg files), sent via email to arrive on or before the deadline.
Email all members of the Awards Committee: Adrian Van Allen, Catherine Nichols, Laura Peers, Cara Krmpotich

Award winners will be notified so they have sufficient time to make travel arrangements. Winners will be formally recognized at the CMA Annual Meeting and CMA Reception during the AAA Annual Meeting, and will also be highlighted in CMA publications.

Michael M. Ames Award

The CMA Michael M. Ames Prize for Innovative Museum Anthropology is awarded to individuals for an innovative project in museum anthropology. Examples include: outstanding single or multi-authored books or published catalogues; temporary or permanent exhibits; repatriation projects; collaborations with descendant communities; educational or outreach projects; multimedia works, and other endeavours. Individuals can be nominated by any member of CMA (self-nominations are not permitted).

Nomination packets must include a cover letter and evidence of the work under consideration (e.g., photographs, catalogues, links to websites, etc.), and supporting materials (e.g., letters of support, media coverage, etc.). All material must be submitted as digital data (Word documents, pdf files and/or jpg files). The nomination packet should not exceed 5 pages.

Evaluation Criteria: 1) Creativity: Is the project a unique and creative exploration of museum anthropology’s central themes, tensions, and histories? 2) Timeliness: Does the project say something important about museum anthropology’s current predicaments and unknown future? 3) Depth: In what ways does the project penetrate into the complexity of material culture and the study of it through novel methods and theories? 4) Impact: Does the project have the potential to make broad and lasting impacts in museum anthropology?

Ames Award recipients will be presented with a gift from CMA and a certificate of the award.

Distinguished Service Award

The CMA Board recently instituted a new Lifetime Achievement/Distinguished Service Award to recognize CMA members whose careers demonstrate extraordinary achievements that have advanced museum anthropology. These achievements might include: collections work, community collaborations, exhibitions, publications, public programming and outreach, teaching, policy development, etc. While many anthropologists distinguish themselves through their works, this award is meant to single out those who, over the course of their careers, have truly helped to define and or reshape the field of anthropology in and of museums. Nominees are expected to have spent at least 20 years working in the field of museum anthropology.

Nomination packets must include: a two-page letter of recommendation in support of the nominee; and any additional supporting materials deemed relevant by the nominator (e.g., nominee’s c.v., other supporting letters). The letter should provide a contextual summary of the nominee’s signature accomplishments, and it should demonstrate the nominee’s qualifications. The nomination packet should not exceed 5 pages.

Evaluation Criteria: 1) Impact: How has the nominee’s work transformed and or contributed to the discipline of museum anthropology (e.g., theory, methodology, influence); 2) Service: How has the nominee provided service to specific museums (e.g., collections, exhibits, public outreach); 3) Mentoring: How has the nominee influenced and inspired the careers of students and colleagues (e.g., mentorship, curriculum development, innovative teaching)?

Lifetime Award recipients will be presented with a gift from CMA and a certificate of the award.

CMA Student Travel Award

The CMA Student Travel Awards are designed to support graduate student travel to the annual AAA meeting to present papers and/or posters. Students and recent graduate degree recipients (those who have defended within the year of the award) are eligible to apply. Each year, CMA will award two prizes of $1000 each.

Application packets (maximum 5 pages) must include: a brief letter indicating the applicant’s student status and explaining how this project reflects the student’s graduate work; a copy of the abstract for the proposed paper or poster (and for the session in which they will be presenting, if known); and a letter of endorsement from an academic advisor at the student’s most recent institution of study.

Evaluation Criteria: 1) Creativity: Is the paper or poster a unique and novel contribution to museum anthropology? 2) Commitment: Does the student demonstrate a commitment to the field of museum anthropology 3) Impact: Does the paper or poster have the potential to develop into a work that could more broadly impact the field of museum anthropology?

Student Travel Award recipients will be presented with a check for $1000 and a certificate of the award.

Via The Harvard Crimson, March 28, 2021

“Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology administrators apologized for the “pain” the museum caused by its refusal to voluntarily return certain funerary objects to Native American tribes and pledged to reverse the policy in response to a letter from the Association on American Indian Affairs last month criticizing the museum.

In February, the Association sent a letter to University President Lawrence S. Bacow accusing Harvard of legal and moral violations in the Museum’s practices regarding its collections of Native American human remains and cultural objects. In the letter, the nonprofit said Harvard’s practices are in violation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.”

More here.

Via The Washington Post, March 24, 2021

“Like museums around the world, the Smithsonian is preparing to reopen in a landscape fraught with uncertainty.

Its leaders worry about whether visitors will return in person whenever the phased restart commences — no dates have yet been announced — and whether the gains in virtual audiences made during the coronavirus pandemic can be maintained. As they improvise with safety protocols and capacity increases over the next six to 18 months, they must also address calls for social justice, diversity and equity that continue to reverberate in their field.

But the Smithsonian has another major hurdle to overcome: The massive complex of art, history and science museums is missing leaders of four of its sites, including the high-profile and popular National Air and Space Museum. This month, Air and Space Director Ellen Stofan left the job she held for three years to become Smithsonian undersecretary for science and research.

With the authorization of two new museums in December, the Smithsonian is also seeking founding directors for the National Museum of the American Latino and the American Women’s History Museum. Those executives will be charged with building staff, collections and a physical space from scratch.

The institution has never searched for six directors simultaneously — although it has never had to develop two new museums at once, either. The absences come at a jarring time, when normal operations are in flux and finances are strained. The Smithsonian stopped disclosing salaries in 2019, but its museum directors earn up to $446,000, according to its tax filings. They set the tone for their institutions and influence everything from exhibitions and public programs to budget, hiring and collecting practices.

The openings also represent a giant opportunity because they may push the Smithsonian to adapt to new demands, better reflect the diversity of the nation and embrace the institution’s shifting mission of helping Americans grapple with social issues and current events.”

More here.

Deadline for Applications: May 1st, 2020

Application: https://iu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8qMV7bhDz2oqHjg

The Institute for Advanced Study at IUB is now accepting applications for its 2021 Virtual Repository Research Fellowship (RRF). Revised for 2021, this year’s fellowship is entirely virtual. Fellows will be awarded $3,000 after successful completion of their fellowship terms, to be detailed in award letters. The fellowship period must be between June and August of 2021. 

This year’s fellowship provides funding for a fellowship for a community scholar or faculty member from outside IUB to conduct in-depth research in digital collections identified by the 2021 partner repositories. The ideal fellowship arrangement is two weeks of focused research using the collection items and tools provided (remotely) by the repository. If a different timing is desired, it should be proposed and explained in the application. These repositories are participating in 2021:

• Archives of Traditional Music

• IU Moving Image Archive

• Indiana University Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology

• IU Paleontology Collection

• Wylie House Museum

• University Archives

Individuals who wish to work with an IUB repository not listed here are not eligible for the RRF fellowship this year. Please check back in 2022.  IU Bloomington partner repositories will make portions of their collections available online for selected faculty or community scholar research fellows. The mode of access will depend on the repository. For more information on specific collections please visit this link: https://ias.indiana.edu/research-support/research-repository-fellows.html  

Prior to submission, proposals must be discussed with one or more staff members at the archive, library, or museum. Collaboration is encouraged. Fellows will be expected to make a virtual presentation of some aspect of the project. This will be facilitated by IAS staff members.

Eligibility: Non-IU faculty members and community scholars are eligible for this fellowship. Graduate or undergraduate students and previous SRRF/RRF fellows are not eligible to receive the fellowship. Applications from faculty members at Minority Serving Institutions and community colleges and from source community scholars are particularly welcome. 

Successful proposals will demonstrate:

• understanding of the collection(s) proposed for use

• the project’s anticipated impact

• plans for wide-spread dissemination

• benefit for the repository as well as the researcher

Questions about collections should be directed to listed repository contacts. Questions about the fellowship should be directed to ias@indiana.edu.

Contact Info: 

Charlotte Forstall, PhD

Administrative and Program Coordinator

Institute for Advanced Study at IU

Contact Email: ias@iu.edu

 

Via Anthropology News, Council for Museum Anthropology, by Lise Puyo, March 25, 2021

“A new community of YouTube creators are using video to give audiences a close-up view of antique garments and accessories. Can they inspire museums to invest in new ways to share their collections and expertise?

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit museums and heritage institutions with unprecedented, multifacted challenges. Necessary closures and social distancing measures have drastically reduced on-site access, with terrible impact on these institutions’ finances. Since many museums have moved to virtual content, they have proposed more online talks, special events, virtual tours, larger database access, and social media challenges. Pleas for museums to produce more digital content are not new, but the COVID-19 pandemic has brought a new urgency for museums to adapt to the crisis and continue to address long-standing calls for transformation.”

More here.