The Attic

2012 Internships for Research Projects at the Museum Conservation Institute

2012-01-26T17:32:00.001Z

The Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute is offering short-term opportunities to work on research projects with staff members. The internships are intended mainly for the summer of 2012, but consideration will be given to projects at other times during the year. Preference will be given to applicants currently enrolled in conservation training programs or graduate students in related

Brown Bag 25th January 2012

2012-01-26T11:35:00.000Z

Marilena Alivizatou, from UCL, on Intangible HeritageIn this enjoyable Brown Bag, Marilena gave a comprehensiveintroduction to the history – and the cultural politics - of intangibleheritage, before looking at how a number of museums around the world collect,display and interpret intangible heritage. She could easily have filled a two-hourslot with her fascinating international examples, but the

Deadline for Museum Utopias Travel Bursaries Extended!

2012-01-23T21:02:00.003Z

'Museum Utopias: Navigating the Imaginary, Ideal and Possible Museum' is the forthcoming interdisciplinary postgraduate symposium organised by the PhD community at the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester. The deadline for our four Travel Bursaries (worth £200 each) has been extended till 31 January 2012! If you are a full-time PhD student not in receipt of sufficient funding from

CFP: Photography and museums

2012-01-23T15:23:00.000Z

2nd International Conference of Photography and TheoryPhotography and Museums: Displayed and DisplayingTHALASSA MUNICIPAL MUSEUM, Ayia Napa, CyprusNovember 30 – December 2, 2012Confirmed Keynote Speaker:Professor Elizabeth EdwardsCALL FOR PAPERSResearch in historical, artistic and vernacular photography has been rapidly expanding in the past few years. Responding to this trend, the International

CFP: cultural heritage and international development

2012-01-20T19:27:00.001Z

CALL FOR PAPERSFor the inaugural conference of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies 'The Re/theorisation of Heritage Studies' in Gothenburg, Sweden, June 5-8 2012.http://www.science.gu.se/english/research/prominent-research-environments/areas-of-strength/Heritage_Studies/news_events/achs/ We seek contributions to the following session: Please submit a short abstract of around 250 words,

Beryl Graham Brown Bag - 'Curating After New Media Art'

2012-01-18T16:45:00.002Z

Brown Bag – Professor Beryl Graham, University of Sunderland‘Curating After New Media Art: Museums and Audiences’Professor Graham came to us today from the north-east of England to speak about New Media Art, how it is curated, how it is displayed and visitor interaction with it. She is clearly passionate about her topic and gave a lively and engaging presentation on the subject.Graham, as

Writing Up: Bad Habits

2012-01-16T22:58:00.002Z

Last night, I sent off my complete first draft of my thesis to my supervisors. I'd like to say that it's all downhill from here, but I know that's not true. Mostly because I have not done anything all day, and that is just one of the bad habits I have that I will have to battle from now until I am done (or possibly until the end of my life, but that doesn't seem feasible right now). I've been

CFP: Materiology of Emotions

2012-01-16T18:44:00.001Z

OBJECTS OF AFFECTION: TOWARDS A MATERIOLOGY OF EMOTIONSINTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCEMay 4-6, 2012 (PRINCETON, NJ)PRINCETON INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL AND REGIONAL STUDIES PRINCETONUNIVERSITYIn the first issue of the journal Veshch-Objet-Gegenstand, which appeared90 years ago in Berlin, the avant-gardist El Lissitsky placed the objectat the center of the artistic and social concerns of the day: “

Royal Engineers Museum, a trip to Kent

2012-01-16T16:07:00.002Z

I’m not quite certain if any of you, our readers, have ever been down to Gillingham, Kent and visited the Royal Engineers Museum. It’s certainly not a place many people seem to know about, unless military type history is of interest. It certainly seems to be undervalued even by its surrounding community, many of which have family in the RE!I was lucky enough to pay a visit on Saturday. I must

CFP: Critical Excess

2012-01-13T19:16:00.002Z

CALL FOR PAPERSFor the inaugural conference of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies 'The Re/theorisation of Heritage Studies' in Gothenburg, Sweden, June 5-8 2012.http://www.science.gu.se/infoglueCalendar/digitalAssets/1775484548_BifogadFil_Conference_Announcement_ACHS%202012_Third_CALL.pdfWe seek contributions to the following session. Please send a title and abstract of no more than 250

CFP: ARTEFACTS 2012

2012-01-12T22:35:00.000Z

ARTEFACTS is an international network of academic and museum-based scholarsof science, technology and medicine interested in promoting the use ofobjects in research. The network was established in 1996 and since then hasheld annual conferences examining the role of artefacts in the making ofscience and technology and related areas.The next conference will be held in Edinburgh, Scotland, 7–9

More Haworth

2012-01-11T20:30:00.004Z

Following on Ceri's post below, I though I would add some more photos of our trip with the Labbers. It was a great trip, and a wonderful opportunity to get out into a more remote part of the country it is otherwise hard to visit. We were saddened to hear that the mini-manuscript by Charlotte Bronte was sold to France, but when I re-viewed the newest adaptation of Jane Eyre over the holidays I was

Museums and Romance

2012-01-11T20:21:00.004Z

If you didn't think museums were a good place to meet someone, consider the title of a recent marketing email for the American Association of Museums annual conference:Last Chance to Get Engaged at AAM Annual Meeting!That's right - if you don't go, you will be a lonely unloveable spinster forever!

A trip to Haworth and the Bronte Parsonage

2012-01-10T13:56:00.001Z

Just before Christmas I got to realise one of my English literature dreams and visited the Yorkshire town of Haworth, famous for being the home of the Bronte sisters, Charlotte, Emily and Anne. It was part of a superbly organised trip with the New History Lab and I meant to write about it before the Christmas break but the little matter of handing my first thesis submission in got in the way!We

A Trip to Bletchley Park, or, An Informal Lesson in the Definition of Gross Indecency

2012-01-05T01:01:00.007Z

Today we have a guest post by one of our counterparts from History, Mark Small, about Bletchley Park, which we have featured on the blog before. In his review of his visit, Mark makes some excellent points about museums and visitor engagement and the interpretation of history. If you've been to Bletchley Park, or represent the museum itself, we want to hear from you in the comments. And now, over

Jeff Hoffman - Christmas Lecture Series

2011-12-14T10:03:00.003Z

Considering the number of us in the department that turned up for this, I thought it might be of interest to others!Last night, former NASA Astronaut Jeff Hoffman graced Leicester with his presence. It is not the first time he has come to lecture here, but it is the first time I’ve had the opportunity to see him speak. Naturally, it was enough to drag me out in the cold, dark wind of last

2011-12-12T22:18:00.004Z

We always joke about the lacuna of men in museum studies; at least in our department, the masculine half of the race forms but a tiny proportion of all our students. It's an amazing testament to the strides made by women over the last 150 years that we can laugh and boast of our predominance in any academic field. The history of the struggle of women for recognition in higher education in the

Last Brown Bag Seminar of 2011.

2011-12-08T20:45:00.019Z

Brown Bag Seminar 7th December 2011 ‘Past, Present and Future of Medical Museums' Dr. Samuel J.M.M. Alberti "Though reared upon the base of outward things,

CFP: The Transformative Museum, May 2012, Denmark

2011-12-04T21:54:00.001Z

DREAM (Danish Research Centre on Education and Advanced Media Materials) is very pleased to release the Call for Papers for its international conference The transformative museum: participation between place and space, to be held 23-25 May 2012 in Roskilde, Denmark.Keynote speakers will include Kevin Crowley (director of the Center for Learning in Out-of-School Environments and an associate

CFP: Science and Education Thematic Journal Issue

2011-12-04T11:52:00.001Z

Science & Education Thematic Journal IssueHistory of Science in MuseumsSubmission Date: 31 March 2012Science museums and science centres are primary avenues to communicate science to the public and are the major non-formal settings for science education. Yet, the potential role of the history (and philosophy) of science in this cultural context is not well explored. This special issue will

Free Museums

2011-12-01T18:53:00.002Z

Apparently, it's the 10-year anniversary of free entry to national museums in the UK, and the numbers suggest it's been a resounding success in raising visitors numbers. But do numbers lie? This BBC article weighs the pros and cons.

Brown Bag review: Kate Hill, 30.11.11

2011-11-30T14:34:00.002Z

Speaker: Kate Hill, Senior Lecturer in History, University ofLincolnBygones: investigating the history of social historycollectingThis paper will investigate two moments in the early history of social historycollection and display: John Kirk's collection of tools, memorabilia andshopfronts, which he viewed as local bygones, and over whose display heexercised careful control at York Castle Museum

Brown Bag Review 23/11/11 - 'I didn't know I could' -Young People Looked After

2011-11-27T11:59:00.003Z

On Wednesday 23rd November, Kevin Harris and Martin Dudley from Local Level presented a Brown Bag session about their recent evaluation project for Renaissance East of England, entitled 'I didn't know I could': Museums and Young People Looked After. Local Level is a community development consultancy that works on numerous projects, but this, they said, had been one of their favourites. The

Imagined Lives at the National Portrait Gallery

2011-11-22T17:31:00.001Z

From the Telegraph, via museumsandstuff:Julian Fellowes, Alexander McCall Smith, Tracy Chevalier, Joanna Trollope and Terry Pratchett are among the authors who have created imaginary biographies to accompany the works.The gallery has a number of paintings which were purchased in the 19th and 20th centuries in the belief that they represented famous people, only for the identities of the sitters

Writing Up: Coming Together

2011-11-18T17:14:00.003Z

Here's the strange and unspoken thing about a PhD: you expect it to be this linear, drawn-out process, but it's not. It all happens at once. Sure, you spend all your time thinking about your project, and much of your time actually doing it, but it kind of coalesces all at once.I went to a fantastic conference (symposium, really) last week which illustrated this perfectly. First off, I was invited

CFP for EVA - Electronic Visualisation and the Arts

2011-11-16T14:17:00.001Z

For those interested in the Visual and Digital Arts, there's a CFP of relevance beyond the hypertext...http://www.eva-london.org/eva-london/eva-london-2012/proposing-authoring Deadline is 22nd January 2012. The website's text follows... "EVA London 2012 Tuesday 10th July – Thursday 12th July 2012Venue: British Computer Society, Covent Garden, London WC2E 7HA The EVA London annual conference

2011-11-15T17:44:00.001Z

Brown Bag Seminar – November 9th 2011 Britta Z. Geschwind PhD student of the School of Cultural History, Stockholm University Review Kindly Written by Cintia Velazquez Museums as Spaces for Learning: Shops and Entrances On Wednesday the 9th of November, the Brown Bag Seminar Series welcomed Britta Geschwind, a PhD researcher of ethnology of Stockholm University in Sweden. This is

CFP: Material Culture Symposium for Emerging Scholars

2011-11-14T17:30:00.000Z

Material MattersWinterthur Museum, Garden & LibrarySaturday, April 14, 2012The Center for Material Culture Studies at the University of Delawareinvites submissions for papers to be given at the Tenth Annual MaterialCulture Symposium for Emerging Scholars.Focus: Object-based research has the potential to expand and even reinventour understanding of culture and history. In honor of the tenth

CFP: Objects of Affection: Towards a Materiology of Emotions (May 4-6, 2012, Princeton U)

2011-11-14T17:29:00.000Z

CALL FOR PAPERS>> OBJECTS OF AFFECTION: TOWARDS A MATERIOLOGY OF EMOTIONS>> INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE>> May 4-6, 2012>> PROGRAM IN RUSSIAN & EURASIAN STUDIES> PRINCETON UNIVERSITY>>> https://www.facebook.com/pages/Program-in-Russian-and-Eurasian-Studies-Princeton-University/251699641532195>> In the first issue of the journal Veshch-Objet-Gegenstand, which appeared> 90 years ago in Berlin, the

CFP: Certain Museums of Uncertain Pasts

2011-11-14T17:28:00.001Z

CALL FOR PAPERSWorkshop (110): Certain Museums of Uncertain PastsHosted by the European Association of Social Anthropologists Conference 2012Nanterre University, France, 10/07/2012 – 13/07/2012Deadline: 28 November 2011ConvenorsGabriela Nicolescu (Goldsmiths College, University of London)Raluca Musat (UCL)Alana Jelinek (Museum of Archeology & Anthropology, University of Cambridge)Short

Last Call for Abstracts for Museum Utopias!

2011-11-14T10:19:00.002Z

The deadline for submitting your abstract for our highly-anticipated interdisciplinary postgraduate Symposium Museum Utopias expires at midnight GMT tonight!Please send your abstract to the email address provided by the CFP here.Museum Utopias will be hosted by the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester, on 27 -28 March 2012.We welcome submissions from postgraduate students,

Brown Bag Audio Up!

2011-11-11T16:29:00.001Z

You'll be pleased to know that the Podcast for Britta's wonderful Brown Bag, 'The Museum Entrance and Shop as Spaces of Learning' is now available on Blackboard. Just go to the tab, 'Research Seminars', and then to the folder called 'Brown Bag Seminars 2011-2012'. You'll find all the audio recordings there, in the future!

Reminder: CFP Deadline this Monday 14 November

2011-11-11T09:55:00.000Z

Don't forget the deadline for submitting your abstract for Museum Utopias, the 2012 Symposium organized by the PhD community at the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester, is this Monday 14 November.Check out our website for further details and the CFP, which can also be found here.We've received some fascinating proposals so far, and look forward to reading yours!

Museum Utopias CFP Reminder

2011-11-07T12:52:00.001Z

There's only one week left to send in your abstract for our March conference, Museum Utopias. Find the CFP here, and follow us on the blog, Twitter, or Facebook!

CFP: Certain Museums of Uncertain Pasts

2011-11-05T20:07:00.000Z

CALL FOR PAPERS Workshop (110): Certain Museums of Uncertain PastsHosted by the European Association of Social Anthropologists Conference 2012Nanterre University, France, 10/07/2012 – 13/07/2012 Deadline: 28 November 2011ConvenorsGabriela Nicolescu (Goldsmiths College, University of London)Raluca Musat (UCL)Alana Jelinek (Museum of Archeology & Anthropology, University of Cambridge)Short

Book your place for Museum Utopias in 2012!

2011-11-04T16:28:00.002Z

The conference team and I are excited to announce that we are now taking bookings for our forthcoming student-led Symposium Museum Utopias: Navigating the Imaginary, Ideal and Possible Museum, to be hosted by the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester, on 27 -28 March 2012.Book your place here.We are also pleased to offer four travel bursaries to full-time PhD students - please check

An Introduction on this rather dull day

2011-11-03T12:17:00.002Z

I need a break from reading, so I thought I'd take a moment to introduce myself. I am the newest contributor to The Attic and I am looking forward to many interesting posts and discussions in the coming years!I am a new PhD student here at Leicester (though I did my MA here 2 years ago). My topic deals with new technologies and their use in museums to engage with young children. Specifically I

Writing Up: The Blank Page

2011-10-30T12:16:00.000Z

Paul Valéry: The Blank SheetIn truth, a blank sheetDeclares by the voidThat there is nothing as beautifulAs that which does not exist.On the magic mirror of its white space,The soul sees before her the place of the miraclesThat we would bring to life with signs and lines.This presence of absence over-excitesAnd at the same time paralyses the definitive act of the pen.There is in all beauty a

CFP: The Transformative Museum

2011-10-16T15:57:00.003+01:00

International Conference 23-25 May 2012 Roskilde UniversityCALL FOR PAPERSGlobalising trends in knowledge economies, digital participation and changing community needs catalyse transformations of museums, galleries and science centres. The conference will present a rich set of analyses of the current situation and raise important questions about the future for material and immaterial cultural and

Obsessionistas

2011-10-15T00:02:00.004+01:00

Long ago, we had a series on this blog that profiled the collections of our contributors. We will probably return to that eventually, especially since we have a whole whack of new students that probably have secret (but meticulously organized) hoards in their houses. In the meantime, enjoy the collections of others vicariously with Obsessionistas, a blog that profiles people's collections whether

Driven mad by your dissertation?

2011-10-10T14:35:00.005+01:00

This week is Mental Health Awareness week at the university. In many ways, this is great timing - students have started their classes; some may already be feeling overwhelmed and homesick, while others might need a reminder that should a crisis situation arise, there are resources to help them maintain their mental, spiritual, and physical health and wellness while completing their degrees.I

The First Brown Bag of the Year! New Starts, and New Strategies

2011-10-06T00:20:00.000+01:00

Brown Bag 5th October 2011 “New Wine Should Be Put Into A New Wineskin” The Science Communication Policy and new Movements in Japan Reiji Takayasu Science Communication Expert, Foundation of Japanese Science Museums It’s that time of year again, and I’m back in the world of the Attic,

CFP: American Art: The Academy, Museums, and the Market

2011-10-04T13:04:00.000+01:00

American Art: The Academy, Museums, and the MarketThe Second Association of Historians of American Art SymposiumOctober 12-13, 2012Boston, MAhttp://www.ahaaonline.org/We invite proposals on any aspect of American Art that relate to thesymposium's theme of the Academy, Museums, and the Market. Proposed papersshould be 20-minute, formal papers on any period of American art, in anymedia, from 1600

Hidden Places

2011-10-03T22:25:00.001+01:00

I was recently at a conference where we talked about Places, People and Stories. We talked about various things, heritage erasure, ruins, deserted places and the tales they tell amongst them. I may write up a proper report later, but in the meantime, I've just heard about this. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/8042281/Parisian-flat-containing-2.1-

CFP: Popular Culture

2011-09-30T22:16:00.000+01:00

Popular Culture Association and American Culture AssociationLibraries, Archives, Museums, and Popular Culture AreaThe Popular Culture Association and the American Culture Association annualconference will be held April 11 - April 14, 2012 in the Copley MarriottHotel in Boston, Massachusetts. Scholars from numerous disciplines willmeet to share their Popular Culture research and interests.The

CFP: Material Matters (Emerging Scholars)

2011-09-30T22:15:00.000+01:00

A Postcard from Denmark

2011-09-24T21:37:00.000+01:00

I'm sitting here, in Copenhagen, thinking of you all. Travelling, like this, makes you dreamy, and makes you desire to view things from a distance. You fly, you see, and the tiny world below you becomes as beautiful as moonrise. In a sense, it's the same with exhibitions. And this, perhaps, is why this episode of Front Row, a BBC Radio Four favorite of mine, struck me. For it talks about the new

Contest!

2011-09-23T05:01:00.001+01:00

It's tough out there, and every little bit helps. So we are offering discounted admission to the 2012 Museum Utopias conference with this contest. Enter for a chance to win!

CFP: International Conference on the History of Records and Archives

2011-09-20T20:02:00.000+01:00

ICHORA 6: International Conference on the History of Records and Archives 6 Exploring Shared Heritage in the History of Archives with Libraries, Information Science/Documentation, Preservation/Conservation, and Museums Conference dates: August 2-4, 2012 Location: Austin, Texas, USA Call for Papers Deadline: 2011 December 12 Further information: http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~ichora6/Twenty-first

Writing Up: The Material Culture of Composition

2011-09-16T04:17:00.004+01:00

This is a view of my workspace here at home; I took the photo this evening, just as I finished writing up my latest (but not last, alas) chapter. You can see that I have a suitcase in which I keep most of my photocopies - this travels with me when I go back and forth from the UK and to my boyfriend's place. I have considered designing a special thesis suitcase, but my boyfriend wisely pointed out

CFP: Stocks, Screens, and Servers: The Materiality of Media

2011-09-14T19:31:00.000+01:00

The Velvet Light Trap editorial board would like to announce that thesubmission for issue #70 has been extended to October 15 (it was originallySeptember 15). We continue to welcome any papers that address one or moreaspects of the topic outlined below. Please do not hesitate to write us atThevelvetlighttrap@gmail.com should you have any questions pertaining tothis message or the CFP.- VLT

Words and muses

2011-09-10T21:19:00.004+01:00

I am probably fast gaining a reputation for being a humourless pedant when it comes to museum terminology, but I just don't think it's right to use "curating" in the context of micro-blogging or "museum" in the context of archiving social networking activity. Technically, of course, a museum is a shrine to the muses - that is, it showcases and celebrates the products of creative inspiration, and

Museum Utopias Call For Papers

2011-09-09T22:53:00.003+01:00

The Museum Utopias 2012 conference call for papers is out now! The deadline for proposals is November 14, and early bird registration will begin in October. Follow the conference blog, Twitter or Facebook for more details!

e. e. cummings, “it is so long since my heart has been with yours”

2011-09-08T04:12:00.000+01:00

it is so long since my heart has been with yoursshut by our mingling arms througha darkness where new lights begin andincrease,since your mind has walked intomy kiss as a strangerinto the streets and colours of a town—that i have perhaps forgottenhow,always(fromthese hurrying cruditiesof blood and flesh)Lovecoins His most gradual gesture,and whittles life to eternity—after which our separating

CFP: Commodification and Materiality

2011-08-24T04:46:00.000+01:00

The Environment, Space, and Place Division (ESPD) seeks participants for the Tenth Annual Cultural Studies Association Meeting, to be held at the University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA,March 28-April 1, 2012 (1) Environmental Commodification In keeping with the conference theme of “Culture Matters,” papers are solicited for one session addressing “environmental commodification.” The

Events of Interest at Birmingham Book Festival

2011-08-23T23:52:00.004+01:00

Many of you will be aware of my...erm...interest in books. So perhaps it is unsurprising that I'm keen to share the two following events with you. In 'All Night at the Museum' and 'Art and Writing: Launching the Barber Trail' leave me in no doubt that more and more people are realising the significant relationship between museum displays and the literary arts. In fact, it suggests that there's a

2011-08-21T23:26:00.004+01:00

Greetings from Berlin IV The Humboldt-Forum – A Promise already Broken Some weeks ago I did research about the “Humboldt-Forum” – a huge museum complex which will be built in 2014 right in the centre of Berlin – for an article I wrote for a magazine. I was puzzled to find out that in spite of the explicit intention of the initiators of the project to bring together Europe (embodied in the

CFP: History, Memory, Performance

2011-08-21T14:14:00.000+01:00

CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT: HISTORY, MEMORY, PERFORMANCE Organized by the Department of Theatre, University of Ottawa and the Carleton Centre for Public History, Carleton University 19-21 April 2012, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario (canada) HMP.HMR@UOTTAWA.CA “History – the past transformed into words or paint or dance or play – is always a performance” (Greg Dening, “Performing

Museum Architecture in Alberta

2011-08-21T02:06:00.004+01:00

The government of my home province, Alberta (Canada), has coughed up some money and a site to build a new building for the provincial museum (Royal Alberta Museum). The whole process has been less than uncontroversial - there were plans to turn it into a solely natural history museum, with social history relegated to a smaller site; for Albertans like me, who already disagree with our provincial

Museum of Broken Relationships

2011-08-18T00:20:00.002+01:00

Those of you who attended Curiouser and Curiouser, or who followed Museobunny's blog, might well remember 'The Museum Of Broken Relationships' and our friends Darko Babic and Zeljika Miklosevic. Well, you'll be pleased to know that the Museum has opened it's doors in London! It began yesterday, and will run until the 4th September in Covent Garden. For more, point your mouse in the direction of

CFP: Great Exhibitions in the Margins, 1851-1938

2011-08-16T03:03:00.000+01:00

Great Exhibitions in the Margins, 1851 - 1938 University of Wolverhampton, 26-27 April 2012 Research has for a long time focused on world fairs, great exhibitions or expositions universelles in the capitals of Europe and in the large cities of the USA. Their crucial role in communicating ideas about the identities of the exhibiting nations (and their relation to other cultures) and in showcasing

CFP: Culture Matters

2011-08-13T21:47:00.000+01:00

Open for Proposal Submissions: 1 August, 2011 *Deadline for Proposals: 19 September, 2011* *Conference Registration Opens: September, 2011* The Cultural Studies Association (CSA) invites participation in its tenth annual conference. This year’s theme, “Culture Matters,” calls for proposals that critically and creatively reflect on culture and “the material” broadly conceived. How do we

CFP: Textiles and Politics

2011-08-13T21:45:00.000+01:00

THE TEXTILE SOCIETY OF AMERICA ANNOUNCES: CALL FOR PAPERS Textiles and Politics Textile Society of America 13th Biennial Symposium Sept 19-22, 2012, Washington DC Abstracts Due: October 1, 2011 The Textile Society of America invites paper proposals for its upcoming symposium, Textiles & Politics, to be held in Washington, D.C. September 19-22, 2012. We seek presentations from all

Save the Date!

2011-08-09T19:54:00.001+01:00

Museum Utopias, the next student conference, will take place at the School of Museum Studies, University of Leicester on March 27 and 28, 2012. Stay tuned for the Call for Papers here and at Museobunny's Burrow.

Pirates Study Day at the Museum of London Docklands

2011-08-09T01:44:00.001+01:00

We here at the Attic like to get behind things like this! The Pirates Study Day at the Museum of London Docklands will delve deeper into our exhibition 'Pirates: the Captain Kidd Story' as leading academics, including Angus Konstam and Dr Jo Stanley, discuss the history and cultural resonance of pirates and piracy. Pirates Study Day @ Museum of London Docklands Delve deeper into our exhibition

Writing Up: The Pleasure of Graphs

2011-07-31T05:55:00.004+01:00

Just wanted to say thanks, Attic readers, for being supportive about my last post; I managed to finish my chapter today, slightly ahead of schedule, though somewhat under my projected word count, and now I have a few spare days in which I can catch up on other stuff! I'm a visual person, and I like facts and figures to track my accomplishments (otherwise I undervalue them), so if you're like me,

Adopt a Museum

2011-07-30T20:34:00.007+01:00

Have you ever visited a museum which isn't getting the recognition it deserves? If so, you may be interested in the latest project from Museum140 entitled 'Adopt-a-Museum'. Museum140 are a collaborative social media group launched by Jenni Fuchs of National Museums Scotland which works with museums and other cultural heritage sites. Adopt-a-Museum aims to encourage museum visitors to champion a

On Curating

2011-07-29T00:29:00.003+01:00

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.-Inigo Montoya, The Princess Bride, 1987.Attic Alumna Amy linked to an article highlighting the rising popularity of the micro-blogging service Tumblr, whose headline was "Curating Online: Hobbies for Hipsters."Back in the day, when I was an undergraduate, and people would ask me what my professional ambitions were, I would

New links added to the sidebar

2011-07-28T12:59:00.003+01:00

As we have a lot of links on the right-hand side bar I thought I would just draw people's attention to a new one that has appeared - below the list of contributors and 'Stop Press' news.This is 'University of Leicester' links and has links to the University's Almanac, dates for terms and semesters, and the revised Research Code of Conduct (for which you will need to log in with your CFS account

The Writing is the Hardest Part (apologies to Tom Petty)

2011-07-28T04:51:00.003+01:00

Long ago, when I embarked on my long-day's-journey-into-night AKA grad school (in fact, I don't remember if it was before my MA or my PhD), a family friend looked grave and said that the last year was the hardest because of the writing-up. I didn't believe him then, because it seemed to me that formulating a feasible research question and finding information were such immense hurdles, that after

There's hope out there for good causes.

2011-07-21T23:05:00.002+01:00

It always pleases me when something really worthwhile gets funding. It lets you know that it's still out there, that there's still hope and that people still care about their heritage. That's why I'm pleased to announce that HLF are supporting the Birmingham Coffin Works redevelopment! It's a strange place, which has recently been used for theatrical productions, and it sounds as though they've

Ph.D. scholarship on the material history of blindness (Medical Museion, University of Copenhagen)

2011-07-20T22:09:00.000+01:00

A three-year Ph.D. scholarship has been announced at Medical Museion,Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen. The scholarship ispart of the research project ‘Vision and touch: a material history of theworld of blindness’, which deals with the history of blindness and itsintricate relation to vision, representation, touch and physical objects.The aim of the project is to study the

Association of Art Historians: 38th Annual AAH Conference & Bookfair

2011-07-18T22:48:00.001+01:00

38th Annual AAH Conference & Bookfair, Association of Art Historians Department of History of Art, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AAM 29 - 31 March 2012 This session explores participation, liveness, interactivity, process-based performative practices and performance for the camera in interdisciplinary practices, presented in visual arts gallery spaces. Live art and

CFP: World Humanities Forum

2011-07-15T19:51:00.000+01:00

See the link for a call for papers of the 1st World Humanities Forum. This forum is organised by UNESCO, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology of Korea and Busan Metropolitan City, in co-operation with the Korean National Commission for UNESCO and the National Research Foundation of Korea.http://www.worldhumanitiesforum.org/bulletin/view.htm?Idx=1&Num=1&Mode=VSome of you might be

Award - Smithsonian Fellowships in Museum Practice

2011-07-13T15:45:00.001+01:00

The Smithsonian's Fellowships in Museum Practice (FMP) program is a professional development opportunity for experienced museum practitioners, academics, and training providers. It was developed in response to an articulated need by the field for career development and renewal opportunities at advanced levels. The program, unique in the

Next Conference!

2011-07-12T22:15:00.004+01:00

[Sir Thomas Moore's Utopia is depicted here in the original 1516 edition; Walters Art Museum.]Museobunny and his helper bunnies are so grateful to everyone who made Curiouser and Curiouser such a success. They have all had a lovely break, and are now ready to plan the next conference, which will be called Museum Utopias. Stay tuned for a call for papers and more details! In case you want to

Travelling? Go to a museum!

2011-07-11T23:16:00.001+01:00

At least one of our cohort is going to be heading Stateside this summer, and for those of our followers who have some time on your hands, the BBC presents a list of must-see exhibitions on across the US in the next few months. Anything you'd add to the list?

Final Call for Papers for 'The Sensuous Object', 29 - 30 September 2011

2011-07-10T13:14:00.005+01:00

Here’s the final (and somewhat extended) call for presentations for the workshop ‘The Sensuous Object' to be held at the Medical Museion, University of Copenhagen on 29-30 September 2011.‘The Sensuous Object’ is an interdisciplinary, participatory workshop concerned with ways we actually engage with objects and aimed at researchers in all disciplines interested in the materiality of actual

anticurate - An Interesting Project for You...

2011-07-09T09:39:00.002+01:00

macBirmingham, the new arts centre in the city, are running anticurate - an experiment in collaborative curation between arts centre 'anticurators' and artists. The Open Day for artwork submission is, unfortunately, today, but non the less, I think this would be an interesting thing for anyone in the area to visit, and review how well such an 'experiment' worked. mac is an interesting project in

Museum Barbie

2011-07-08T05:44:00.005+01:00

As someone who coveted bourgeois Barbies during my Soviet childhood (and received one almost immediately upon immigration to the decadent West), and spent many years creating elaborate historically-inspired outfits for my collection of yard-sale and old friends' Barbies (and even was in talks to donate my work to a toy museum), I am VERY excited about this: Museum Barbie! No, she is not a

Museums Collections at Risk - an ICRROM Call for Help

2011-07-06T23:05:00.002+01:00

I recently found this questionnaire, from ICRROM and RE-ORG, and perhaps some of you who do work in collections management would be able to help them and fill it in - you could get a year's subscription to UNESCO's Museum International magazine...but it's just nice to help!From the Survey WebsiteMuseum collections are at serious risk!An estimated 60% of the world's collections in storage are

CFP International Journal of Intangible Heritage

2011-07-04T12:42:00.001+01:00

Call for papers of International Journal of Intangible HeritageInternational Journal of Intangible Heritage seeks to be an inter-communicative and interdisciplinary channel for scholarly research on intangible heritage around the world with respect to its preservation, transmission and promotion. With critical academic articles, provocative viewpoints and reviews, the IJIH, a peer-reviewed

Finally - the LAST BROWN BAG OF THE ACADEMIC YEAR

2011-06-27T10:03:00.002+01:00

Brown Bags came rather thick and fast at the end of this term- I’m not entirely sure that I’ve kept up with them all! Even in Research Week, the busiest week of the year, we had one – and though I’ve taken longer than usual about writing it up, because of that, I am pleased to announce that below you shall find theFINAL BROWN BAG OF THE YEAR!Brown Bag 6th June 2011“Moving Beyond Expert

2011-06-26T21:26:00.001+01:00