Augustus John: Reassessing the Collections at Amgueddfa Cymru—Museum Wales and Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru—National Library of Wales

The University of Bristol, Prifysgol Aberystwyth University, Amgueddfa Cymru—Museum Wales and Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru—National Library of Wales are pleased to announce the availability of a fully-funded Collaborative Doctoral Studentship from October 2024 under the AHRC’s Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) Scheme.

The project will be jointly supervised by Grace Brockington (Associate Professor of the History of Art at the University of Bristol), Nicholas Thornton (Head of Modern and Contemporary Art at Museum Wales), Nia Daniel (Head of Archives at the National Library of Wales) and Samuel Raybone (Lecturer in Art History at Aberystwyth University).

The student will be based at the University of Bristol and at National Museum Cardiff. There will be opportunities to take part in the programme of CDP Cohort Development events and other activities organized by the AHRC, as well as training provided by the University of Bristol, Aberystwyth University, and the CDP Welsh Culture and Heritage Consortium.

Project Description:

The Welsh artist Augustus John (1878–1961) was a leading figure in British and European modernist movements. This studentship will critically re-evaluate him as a figure of his time and expand the discussion about his significance today. John built his reputation on representing marginalised groups, and recent scholarship has critiqued his patriarchal masculinity, appropriation of Gypsy, Roma, Traveller culture, and exoticizing attitude towards Jamaican people of colour. However, his efforts to learn both English and Welsh dialects of the Romani language suggest genuine interest; and his Jamaica portraits convey ‘the heart, warmth and soul of the characters’ (Morgan 2022). The studentship presents a unique opportunity to confront these issues, bringing new material to bear on debates that are critical to revisionist histories of modernisms and changing perceptions of John.

The studentship draws principally on the John collection at Amgueddfa Cymru—Museum Wales, the largest and most comprehensive holding of John’s work in the world, which has recently been digitised and published online; and on the major collection of his papers and sketchbooks at the National Library of Wales. The successful candidate will be supported to develop an individual project which enhances understanding of these underused collections through sustained collection-based and archival research, and interpretation informed by historical contexts and critical debates.

Eligibility:

The studentship is open to both Home and International applicants. Further guidance can be found here on the UKRI Eligibility for Studentship Funding site. All applicants must meet UKRI terms and conditions for funding.

Funding amount:

The AHRC award pays tuition fees up to the value of the full-time home UKRI rate for PhD degrees. If an international student is selected, the difference between the home and overseas fees will be waived. All students, both home and international, receive a full maintenance grant of £19,237/year (rising in alignment with UKRI) plus a CDP maintenance payment of £600/year. The student is eligible to receive an additional travel and related expenses grant courtesy of the CDP4 Welsh Heritage Consortium worth up to £400 per year for 4 years.

Duration:

Funding period: 4 years full time. Due to visa restrictions, part-time study up to a maximum of 8 years is available for UK nationals only. Placement and development opportunities, to be shaped in collaboration with the successful candidate, will be embedded into this funding period.

Candidate requirements:

We wish to attract the widest range of potential students to the CDP programme and are committed to encouraging students from different backgrounds to apply. Entry requirements for the PhD in History of Art at Bristol are detailed here. Applicants should ideally have or expect to receive a relevant Masters-level qualification and/or be able to demonstrate equivalent experience in a professional setting. Suitable disciplines are flexible, but might include the History of Art, History, and Museum Studies. The following additional requirements are specific to this project:

• Applicants must be able to demonstrate an interest in the museum sector as well as potential and enthusiasm for developing skills more widely in related areas.
• The student will be expected to spend time in Cardiff and Aberystwyth, where the main collections are located, and to attend research and training events at Bristol. They may also wish to conduct archival research elsewhere.

How to Apply

To apply, please visit: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/apply/

When completing the application form, please observe the following:

• select ‘History of Art (PhD)’ as the programme choice
• select ‘September 2024’ as the start date
• in the funding section, choose ‘Other’ and specify ‘CDP Augustus John’
• in the ‘Research Statement’ section, the proposed project title should be ‘Augustus John: Reassessing the Collections at Amgueddfa Cymru—Museum Wales and Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru—National Library of Wales’
• The required documentation is listed here on the Postgraduate Admissions Statement for History of Art, as well as on the online application site. In addition, please upload a writing sample in the section entitled ‘Other Information’. This should consist of one or more pieces of work totalling not more than 5000 words. For example, you might submit a coursework essay, dissertation chapter, or exhibition catalogue essay.

For further information on the application process, please contact the University of Bristol Postgraduate Arts Admissions team: artf-pgadmissions@bristol.ac.uk

Supervisors:

• Grace Brockington, Associate Professor of the History of Art, University of Bristol, g.brockington@bris.ac.uk
• Samuel Raybone, Lecturer in Art History, Aberystwyth University, sar60@aber.ac.uk
• Nicholas Thornton, Head of Modern and Contemporary Art, Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, Nicholas.thornton@museumwales.ac.uk
• Nia Daniel, Head of Archives, National Library of Wales, nia.daniel@llyfrgell.cymru

Funder: AHRC’s Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) Scheme.

Application deadline: 31 May 2024, 17:00 BST

Expected start date: 1 October 2024