This one-year doctoral or post-doctoral fellowship is awarded to a promising and exceptional curator/scholar specialized in social/cultural anthropology, archeology art or global history of the Americas, preferably with a focus on Chile, Peru or Brazil. The fellowship should start in April/May 2020.
The Museum am Rothenbaum (formerly Museum für Völkerkunde Hamburg), one of the premier ethnographic museums in Germany, is in the course of a major repositioning process that includes a renovation of the museum building, the new conceptualization of the permanent display and a reconfiguration of the program. Funded via “MARKK in Motion” within the framework of the Initiative for Ethnological Collections by the Kulturstiftung des Bundes (German cultural foundation), the fellowship is designed for international emerging scholars, preferably originating from the research areas in question, to study a collection of the America holdings of the Museum am Rothenbaum. The fellow is expected to contribute to the development of the permanent display with a creative and well-researched curatorial input, ideally in close collaboration or exchange with members of the originating society.
The Americas collection has its beginnings in the second half of the 19th century, when objects entered the museum through private collectors, representatives from Hamburg’s shipping and trading companies and via diplomatic networks. The research focus should ideally be placed on segments of the archaeological and ethnographical museum collections from Chile, Peru or Brazil and their specific collection histories. However, the regional focus could be extended if necessary. Based on these holdings, the fellow should contribute a chapter in the exhibition’s section on world trade, focusing in particular on the Hamburg-based trade networks with natural resources (e.g. copper, saltpeter and guano) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and their entanglements with the museum’s material collections. Moreover, the topic of “World Trade” could be linked to the history of German communities in the Americas (1850 – 1950s).
The fellow will collaborate closely with the museum’s curatorial team, in particular the curator of the Americas, while implementing their own research project. During the year the fellow is expected to give at least one public lecture and to participate in dialogues with the audience and internal planning workshops.
Qualifications and Requirements
PhD candidate or a completed doctorate degree in anthropology, art history or global history with specialization in the Americas and a specific interest in material culture studies. Demonstrated accomplishments in the field of research, education and/or exhibition practice at a museum, research institute, university or art college. Fluent written and spoken English is essential, German language skills are desirable and necessary for the use of documentation at the museum.
Conditions
The fellow will receive an overall remuneration package of 40.000 Euros for the entire year. This includes all health care and tax payments. Accommodation and travel expenses to Hamburg lie within the responsibility of the successful candidate. The Museum am Rothenbaum will provide an additional travel budget to facilitate exchange with the descendants of the originating society. The Museum am Rothenbaum will support the fellow in organizing administrational paperwork such as limited residency, work permit, etc. The fellow will be provided with a work area and full access to the infrastructure of the Museum am Rothenbaum, including full access to the object, photo and archival collections, as well as other facilities in Hamburg.
Apply
Interested scholars are invited to send their application materials joined in one single pdf via email to Gabriel Schimmeroth: gabriel.schimmeroth@markk-hamburg.de no later than February 3, 2020.
The application should be written in English and include a max. 3000 word research proposal, curriculum Vitae, a selected, two-page bibliography, 2 reference letters and a one-page cover letter explaining the motivation for the application.
For more information please contact:
Gabriel Schimmeroth
Museum am Rothenbaum
gabriel.schimmeroth@markk-hamburg.de