Apologies for cross posting, and for a further studentship announcement, but I would be grateful if you could draw the notice below to the attention of any potentially interested applicants. People should contact myself in the first instance for any further information.

 

Best wishes

 

David Matless

 

 

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Award

 

PhD Studentship

 

School of Geography, University of Nottingham and the Science Museum

 

‘British Small Craft’: the cultural geographies of mid twentieth century technology and display

 

Supervisors: Prof David Matless and Prof Mike Heffernan (University of Nottingham), Dr Tim Boon and David Rooney (Science Museum)

 

The University of Nottingham’s School Of Geography, in collaboration with The Science Museum London, is seeking to award a fully-funded PhD studentship from October 2010. The studentship, which will support three years of full-time study, is funded through the Arts and Humanities Research Council Collaborative Doctoral Awards Scheme.

 

The studentship available is for a doctoral research project on ‘British Small Craft’: the cultural geographies of mid twentieth century technology and display. The project will investigate the ‘British Small Craft’ displays within the Shipping Gallery of the Science Museum, London, revealing the stories behind the collection and the individual objects displayed, providing a close analysis of individual artefacts, examining public engagement with the museum, and connecting the displays into wider cultural debates concerning British identity, maritime cultures and the cultures of landscape (and seascape) in mid twentieth century Britain. The ‘British Small Craft’ display opened in 1963, though much of the material was acquired in the 1930s. It comprises fifteen showcases of models of British boats, largely coastal, arranged primarily by geographical region, and presented within landscape scenes. The Shipping Gallery is now the oldest unmodified gallery display at the Science Museum; plans for closure and removal in 2013 give timeliness to this study. The research will draw on extensive archival holdings at the Science Museum, and will contribute to the online public resources of the Museum.

 

In line with research council requirements, the studentship is open to UK or EU citizens who have been resident in the UK for the last three years. Standard tuition fees and (for UK students only) a maintenance grant (for 2009-10 the level of grant was £13,290) will be paid by the AHRC for three years. The studentship also includes £2,000 towards annual research costs from the Science Museum.

 

Applicants should have a First Class or Upper Second Class degree, and should ideally have or be undertaking a Masters degree in a relevant discipline such as geography, museum studies, cultural studies or history, or have relevant research experience in an appropriate field. The successful candidate will work within the Cultural and Historical Geography Research Group http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/geography/ in the School of Geography, University of Nottingham, and with the research staff of the Science Museum. The student will benefit from engagement with museological and curatorial practice at one of Britain's leading museums.

 

Informal enquiries can be addressed to David Matless at the School of Geography by email at [log in to unmask], or tel: 0115 9515436.

 

Applicants should send a copy of their curriculum vitae with the names and addresses of two referees, together with a statement outlining their academic interests and reasons for applying for this studentship to Jenny Ashmore at [log in to unmask] and to David Matless at [log in to unmask]

 

The deadline for applications is Friday 4 June 2010. Interviews for the studentship will be held at the Science Museum on Thursday 17 June.