The PhD will provide a unique opportunity to engage with an under-researched collection of African art at the University of Birmingham (UoB), a discrete collection that is part of Research and Cultural Collections (RCC) - a university museum holding full Museum Accredited status from Arts Council England (ACE) The African Collection is rich and diverse: it celebrates extensive cultural traditions and modern and contemporary artistic expression through a range of objects and media. Communities represented are Yorùbá, Hausa and Asante, and it includes work by artists such as Ben Enwonwu and Justus Akeredolu, as well as an important group of Nigerian modernist paintings by artists associated with the Zaria Arts Society.
The PhD has two key aims:
- It will provide the first in-depth critical assessment of art objects from the collection ever undertaken. It will approach the relation between form, content, and the aesthetics of artworks and objects which traditionally have been labelled as ‘African’ from multiple perspectives. It will critically evaluate art historical notions such as ‘decorative art’ or ‘tourist art’ and emphasize diverse applications of the terms ‘African’ and ‘diaspora’.
- It will explore how collections of African art might be able to employ new methods and approaches to engage diaspora communities and widen audience participation, including strategies of co-curation, and the use of digital technologies. By doing so, it will contribute to RCC’s ongoing co-curation initiatives, such as ‘Africanize’ in collaboration with ‘We Don’t Settle’ and Black artists in Birmingham and the ongoing programme of community and artist engagement, where focus is directed towards co-research and co-production and HEI researchers working with external researchers from source communities.
This PhD is timely and necessary. It will make a significant contribution to current debates around the colonial legacy of museum collections in Europe and North America with special emphasis on the objects’ diasporic agency and significance for source communities. As part of a university collection, research into the African collection will uniquely address calls to decolonise curricula and university collections.
University of Birmingham Information
Founded in 1900, University of Birmingham is a non-profit public higher education institution located in the urban setting of the large city of Birmingham (population range of 1,000,000-5,000,000 inhabitants), West Midlands. Officially accredited and/or recognized by the Privy Council, University of Birmingham is a very large (uniRank enrollment range: 30,000-34,999 students) coeducational higher education institution. University of Birmingham offers courses and programs leading to officially recognized higher education degrees such as bachelor degrees in several areas of study. See the uniRank degree levels and areas of study matrix below for further details. International students are welcome to apply for enrollment.
Eligibility Criteria
These scholarships are designed to create opportunities and address the underrepresentation of talented Black or Black mixed heritage students in academia. Applicants who meet all of the following criteria are eligible to apply:
- UK nationals and eligible for registration as Home students
- Members of one of the following ethnic groups:
- Black African
- Black Caribbean
- Black Other
- Mixed – White and Black Caribbean
- Mixed – White and Black African
- Other mixed background (to include Black African, Black Caribbean or Black Other)
- Not already enrolled on a PhD programme at the University of Birmingham
Application Process
Go to University of Birmingham on sits.bham.ac.uk to apply
Once applicants have familiarised themselves with the above project details, they are encouraged to contact the lead PhD supervisor to discuss the project and the applicant's suitability for the project. This is recommended before you apply to the PhD project.
CONTACT THE LEAD SUPERVISOR
- After applicants have made contact with the lead PhD supervisor, you will then need to apply to the PhD project using our online application portal: you should select '125th Anniversary Scholarships (CAL)'. You will need to create an account for the online application portal and you will be prompted to sign-in upon your return to the portal.
- You do not need to complete your application in one session; you can save your application at each stage and return to the portal at any stage before submission, particularly if you do not have all of the necessary documents when you begin your application.
- As this is an 'advertised PhD', in which you will studying the above project that has already been provided by the academic supervisor(s), you do not need to submit a research proposal. Your personal statement will suffice for determining your suitability for the PhD project as well as your previous academic, professional and personal experiences.
The deadline for applications is 23:59 (UK time) on Tuesday 30 April 2024.
Possible research questions include:
- What is the role and significance of the African Collection for African diaspora communities in Birmingham and the UK?
- What might be gaps and silences in the collection, and how could these be addressed through new models of (co-)curation, public engagement and museum interpretation?
- How could museums and collections of African art in Europe utilise the possibilities offered by digital technologies to contextualise the objects in their collections and engage with source communities?
Applicants are encouraged to use the 'Project Overview' to form the basis of their research proposal and use their personal statement to outline what they will bring to the project and how they would develop it in line with your own research interests.
Application portal tips
- You don’t need to complete your application in one session. Simply save it and come back to it when you’re ready.
- Avoid delays by checking all your information is accurate and complete.
- Your application won’t be processed until you’ve completed all the relevant sections and submitted it.
- If you run into any technical issues with your application, email us at
Founded in 1900, University of Birmingham is a non-profit public higher education institution located in the urban setting of the large city of Birmingham (population range of 1,000,000-5,000,000 inhabitants), West Midlands. Officially accredited and/or recognized by the Privy Council, University of Birmingham is a very large (uniRank enrollment range: 30,000-34,999 students) coeducational higher education institution. University of Birmingham offers courses and programs leading to officially recognized higher education degrees such as bachelor degrees in several areas of study. See the uniRank degree levels and areas of study matrix below for further details. International students are welcome to apply for enrollment.