Bulletin

History Lab Bulletin 21 February 2012

Dear all,

See below for projects and events that may be of interest to History Lab members.

In this issue:

• Next in History Lab
• Workshops
• Calls for Papers
• Events and conferences

_________________________________________________

Next in History Lab:

• Meet the historian: Sally Alexander, Wednesday 22 February, 18:00 – 20:00, Torrington Room (Room 104), South Block, Senate House
  'Meet the Historian’ events are an opportunity to hear at first hand from noted historians how and why they became historians in the first place, their thoughts on research and the discipline generally, and about their latest work. There will be the chance to ask questions and enter into discussion, and to join the speaker for drinks after the talk.
  Sally Alexander is Professor of Modern History at Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been an editor of History Workshop Journal since its foundation in 1976 and her research interests lie in the history of social movements, feminism in particular, London history, the history of psychoanalysis, oral history and subjectivity. Co-convenor of the Modern British History seminar and Psychoanalysis and History at the IHR, she is currently editing, with Professor Barbara Taylor, a volume on Psychoanalysis and History for Palgrave, 2012.
• Methods Workshop: 'Facing the blank page, starting to write', Tuesday 28 February, 18:00 – 20:00, Room S261, Senate House
  Short presentations by three historians on strategies they use for starting to write, followed by a chaired discussion: Charles Smith (Loughborough), Lucy Allwright (Warwick), and Elaine Tierney (Sussex/ Victoria & Albert Museum)
  The History Lab Methods Workshop is a programme of workshops which asks PHD students to reveal, discuss and consider each other’s research methodologies. Each event features a short presentation (10-15 minutes each) by three PHD students on their methods, followed by a chaired discussion.
  For more information, see: http://www.history.ac.uk/historylab
• Putting Historical Theory Into Practice: A one-day study day organised by the Centre for History and Theory at Roehampton University and History Lab, 9 May 2012
  This study day is directed towards postgraduate (master's and doctoral) students who wish to look at current historical theory and the ways in which theory can be used in producing historical research. It is made up of a series of interactive workshops in which academics from Roehampton introduce theoretical ideas which have influenced their own historical work and explore the ways in which these ideas can be deployed in writing dissertations, articles and books. The focus of the day will very much be on the practical value of theory and there will be ample opportunities for students to reflect on and discuss the role of theory in their own work.

Venue: Howard 103, Department of Humanities,University of Roehampton, Roehampton Lane, London SW15 5PU

Programme:
10.00-10.30 - Registration
10.30 – 11.15: John Tosh: 'Paradigms for the perplexed' – How historians handle explanatory theories
11.15 – 12.15: Krisztina Robert: ‘The spatial turn’ - How spatial theory and analysis can be used in historical research
12.15 – 1.15: Lunch
1.15 – 2. 0: Susan Deacy and Fiona McHardy: ‘New approaches to the history of violence’ – with a special focus on ancient Greece
2.0-2.45: Sara Pennell: ‘History and material culture’: Looking at the way theoretical ideas have migrated to History from Archaeology and Anthropology
2.45-3.30: Carrie Hamilton: ‘History and intersectionality’ – drawing on theory from feminism and critical race theory
3.30-4.0: Tea
4.0-5.0: Round table on ‘Historiography and Historical theory now’ led by Antonio Cartolano

The event is free. Lunch will be available from the university cafés, or you are welcome to bring your own.
To register, open 9 May on the calendar at www.history.ac.uk/historylab and click on the link at the end.

• Call for papers: Agency: History Lab Annual Conference 13-14 June 2012.
  The Conference will open with a plenary panel on Agency and history. Professor David d’Avray FBA and Professor Catherine Hall of UCL, and Professor Christian List of the LSE will each give a short paper, followed by a round-table discussion. To submit a proposal for the conference, please send your title along with a 250-word abstract, your institutional affiliation, and full contact details to: historylab2012@gmail.com by Monday 27 February.
  For more information see: http://the-history-lab.blogspot.com/
• History Lab Committee: The roles on the History Lab committee change each Easter as final-year students leave to focus on writing up. So this is an ideal time to join the committee and get involved. Roles are varied, including events officer, secretary, catering officer and treasurer, and we meet once a fortnight in term time. Being part of the committee gives you a say in the kind of events we organise, expands your network, does wonders for the skills section of your CV - and can be fun!

If you are a master's or doctoral student in history or a related discipline and you'd like more information, please email us on: ihrhistorylab@gmail.com.

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Workshop

• Institute of Historical Research: 'Preservation and research data: what's in it for me?', 14 March, 14:00-16:30, Stewart House (Room ST265) University of London 32 Russell Square
  To register for FREE, contact Jane Winters jane.winters@sas.ac.uk
  For more information, see: http://www.history.ac.uk/events/event/3723

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Call for papers

• 'Clay Embodied: Ceramics and the Human Form', a two day symposium at the Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham, AL, February 22-23, 2013

The Birmingham Museum of Art, a comprehensive regional museum, has emerged as a major Southeastern center for ceramic study. Currently, the collection includes more than 16,000 objects of ceramic art from Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia, dating from the Jomon period of Neolithic Japan to the present day. The collection reflects the centrality of ceramics to cultures
worldwide. It is central to the mission of the Museum to provide the public with a sense of the value and relevance of the artworks it houses.

The primary purpose of hosting a ceramics symposium is to educate the public about the importance and relevance of ceramics both historically and today. By exploring universal themes that touch on core aspects of the human experience, the Museum hopes to engage current and future museum visitors by connecting ceramic art to people and their lives.

Ceramics of all periods and cultures share a relationship with the human body. Whether utilitarian, ritualistic, decorative, or artistic in function, all ceramics interface with the human body in their design, manufacture, decoration, or use. Indeed, the very nomenclature used to describe a ceramic pot the lip, mouth, neck, shoulder, belly, and foot is derived from the human form. The symposium will explore the relationship between ceramics and the human body by considering the subject in a broad
array of historical and geographical contexts.

The Museum welcomes a variety of papers that address the relationship between ceramics and the human form. The subject is intended to be interpreted broadly. Papers representing new research are particularly welcome and authors are invited to submit proposals based on, but not limited to, the following themes:
contextual foundation for the relationship between ceramics and the human form, materials and processes, formal and conceptual language, the role of curatorial practice in making relationships between ceramics and the human form manifest, case studies of individual artists, movements, and the iconography of the artist or cultural group.

Proposals for papers (300 words) accompanied by short biographies of the authors (150 words) should be submitted by April 1, 2012 in Word format.

A schedule for submission and presentation of papers is available for potential presenters and all inquiries should be made to
aforschler@artsbma.org.

_________________________________________________

Professor John Miller Event and Conference

• Queen Mary College (QMUL) is hosting a lecture on the evening of the 12th March and a full-day conference on the 13th March to mark Professor John Miller's retirement. Professor Miller has been a leading scholar of the Restoration and early 18th century periods, and a long-time convener of the 17th Century British History seminar at the IHR. Full details of these events, including booking information, are available at: http://www.qmul.ac.uk/artstwo/miller/index.html.
  Doctoral students and faculty members are welcome to attend.

--
Regards,

The History Lab team.

Bulletin

History Lab Bulletin 12 February 2012

Dear all,

See below for projects and events that may be of interest to History Lab members.

In this issue:

• Next in History Lab
• Panel Debate
• Museum Studies Day
• Call for papers
• Talks, tours, events
• Colloquium

_________________________________________________

Next in History Lab:

• Seminar: Elena Zanoni (Verona/Birkbeck) - Antonio Stoppani and the Popularisation of Science in Risorgimental Italy, Thursday 16 February, 17:30 – 19:30, Holden Room (Room 103), Senate House
• Meet the historian: Sally Alexander, Wednesday 22 February, 18:00 – 20:00, Torrington Room (Room 104), South Block, Senate House
  'Meet the Historian’ events are an opportunity to hear at first hand from noted historians how and why they became historians in the first place, their thoughts on research and the discipline generally, and about their latest work. There will be the chance to ask questions and enter into discussion, and to join the speaker for drinks after the talk.
  Sally Alexander is Professor of Modern History at Goldsmiths, University of London. She has been an editor of History Workshop Journal since its foundation in 1976 and her research interests lie in the history of social movements, feminism in particular, London history, the history of psychoanalysis, oral history and subjectivity. Co-convenor of the Modern British History seminar and Psychoanalysis and History at the IHR, she is currently editing, with Professor Barbara Taylor, a volume on Psychoanalysis and History for Palgrave, 2012.
• Methods Workshop: Facing the blank page, starting to write, Tuesday 28 February, 18:00 – 20:00, Room S261, Senate House
  For more information, see: http://www.history.ac.uk/historylab

• Calls for papers: Agency: History Lab Annual Conference 13-14 June 2012.
  The Conference will open with a plenary panel on Agency and history. Professor David d’Avray FBA and Professor Catherine Hall of UCL, and Professor Christian List of the LSE will each give a short paper, followed by a round-table discussion. To submit a proposal for the conference, please send your title along with a 250-word abstract, your institutional affiliation, and full contact details to: historylab2012@gmail.com by Monday 27 February.
  For more information see: http://the-history-lab.blogspot.com/

_________________________________________________

Panel Debate

• Hosted by the Raphael Samuel History Centre and the British Library: 'The past in today’s politics: a debate on the state of history-writing as a political act', 5 March 2012, 6pm to 8pm, Eliot Room, British Library Conference Centre, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB
  Booking essential as seating is limited: to book please email Katy Pettit - k.pettit@uel.ac.uk
  Panel members: Professor Virginia Berridge (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and co-founder of ‘History & Policy’), Maurice Glasman, Dr Maurice Glasman (Reader in Political Theory at London Metropolitan University and Labour Peer), Dr Mark Levene (University of Southampton), Professor Lynne Segal (Birkbeck College, University of London)
  Chair: Gareth Stedman Jones (Director of the Centre for History and Economics, Cambridge, Fellow of King's College, Cambridge University and Professor of the History of Ideas at Queen Mary, University of London)
  Is there a place for politics in academic historical research?
  A generation ago historians were at the forefront of political debates on hot topics such as gender, class, sexuality, race, health and peace campaigning. Radical historians such as Raphael Samuel and the History Workshop movement not only informed public discussion through historical research, but questioned current norms and structures and contributed to the reshaping of behaviours, ways of life and beliefs through their grass-roots activism. Moving away from top-down historical subject matter, they excavated hidden histories, driven by observation or experience of inequality to reveal and question power relations in the past and present, and to suggest how things could be in the future.
  Are historians politically-minded nowadays? How many activist-academics are there today highlighting urgent contemporary political concerns through the focus of an historical lens? Is it that historians are engaging differently in political lobbying? What are the dangers and implications of historical research being applied wrongly for political campaigning? Is there a generational divide in which younger scholars are no longer radicalised or motivated by contemporary politics to incorporate it into polemical history-writing? Have all the social and political 'battles' been fought and won? Does the way historians are funded today constrict the type of history that is written? Are today’s historians interrogating their own investment in the histories they are telling? And if so, what questions are being asked and what methods are being used?
  This panel debate will focus on these questions and more as we ask what sort of role the historian can play in contemporary political debate.
  For further information: http://www.raphael-samuel.org.uk/events/c_and_d.php or contact claremakepeace@hotmail.com or victoriapowell1@gmail.com.

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Museum Studies Day

• British Museum, Museum studies day, Monday 12 March 2012, 11.00–15.30,BP Lecture Theatre,£10

A day of talks by British Museum staff gives a behind-the-scenes insight into the running and organisation of the British Museum. Students wishing to broaden their knowledge of museums and the culture and heritage sector are welcome.
10.30–11.00
Registration
11.00–11.30
Emma Poulter, Community Programmes Coordinator
Emma manages the Museum’s Talking Objects programme, connecting curators with young people from the local community, encouraging dialogue and debate around a single Museum object. Since 2009 the programme has worked with young people from across London to discover, question and creatively respond to the stories behind British Museum objects. Emma will provide an overview of the programme and will also discuss the importance of bringing together object-focused research with an audience-led approach within the Museum.
11.30–12.00
Katherine Hudson, Head of Membership
Membership both provides a sustainable source of income for the Museum and engages a community of supporters. Katherine will speak about the strategic aims behind Membership, its relationship to other parts of the Museum’s work and the diversity of areas involved in delivering and growing a Membership scheme, from programming events and producing the Members’ magazine to creating the new Members’ Room.
12.00–12.30
Stuart Frost, Head of Interpretation
Stuart provides an overview of the work of the Museum’s Interpretation Team. This presentation will focus on the team’s role in the development of temporary exhibitions, particularly its use of audience research to better understand and improve the visitor experience.
12.30–12.45
Panel Q&A and short introduction to Future Curators Programme
12.45–13.45
Lunch, please make your own arrangements
13.45–14.15
Evan York, Senior Museum Assistant, Ancient Egypt and Sudan
The Museum Assistant teams have a vital role within the departmental collections, in all aspects of their everyday work. They are responsible for looking after the collections to ensure their preservation and accessibility, within the Museum and on loan.
14.15–14.45
Catherine Eagleton, Curator of Modern Money, Coins and Medals
Catherine is the lead curator on the project to redisplay the permanent Money Gallery (Room 68). The new Citi Money Gallery opens in June 2012, and will be linked to a five-year educational and communities programme. Catherine will talk about what it’s like leading a permanent gallery redisplay project, and what she wishes she had known at the start.
14.45–15.15
Matthew Cock, Head of Web
Matthew will talk about the Museum’s website, and some of the initiatives and projects that the web and marketing teams have undertaken to engage audiences on the website and across the web in recent years, including the Wikipedian-in-Residence project, A History of the World and Hajj Stories.
15.15–15.30
Panel Q&A
Tickets may be booked through the British Museum Ticket Desk, Tel: 020 7323 8181 Fax: 020 7323 8616 or online at
www.britishmuseum.org.

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Calls for papers

• The 6th Annual International Conference of the Taiwan Association of
  Classical, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, October 26-27, 2012
  “Infinite riches in a little room”: Collecting as a Cultural Practice and Literary Theme in Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Renaissance
  Collecting is a topic which has attracted much attention in recent years. William Gibson, the pioneer of cyberpunk fiction, observed that “the idea of the Collectible is everywhere today.” Yet, if we are to believe one critical study of the subject, the cultural practice of collecting goes back to the mythical beginnings of humanity: “Noah was the first collector. Adam had given names to the animals, but it fell to Noah to collect them … And Noah, perhaps alone of all collectors, achieved the complete set.” (John Elsner and Roger Cardinal) A more recent collector, the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal (669-626 BCE) may not have had a complete set, but he did maintain a great library that held thousands of clay tablets. The Hellenistic Greeks and Romans collected books, statues, gems, etc. and created the first musea, those of Alexandria and Pergamon being the most prominent examples. They also wrote about collecting and were avid encyclopedists. Pliny the Elder’s Naturalis Historia is the model for many later writings in the genre which includes Isidore of Seville’s Etymologiae (ca. 630), the 10th Century Byzantine Suda, and Vincent of Beauvais’ high medieval Speculum majus (13th Century). The monastic libraries of the Middle Ages and their scriptoria copied and collected books and in doing so preserved the European heritage. Yet, it was the global commerce in knowledge, people, and objects during the age of discovery and exploration which aroused a passion for collecting as never before as princes, scientists, merchants, and artists all over Europe from Ferrante Imperato in Naples to Peter the Great in Russia competed in creating increasingly spectacular and luxurious studiolos, cabinets of curiosities, Wunderkammer, and Kunstkamers. Yet, the habit could be costly. King Charles I of England, a lavish spender and great collector of art, first lost his kingdom and then his life. Less than a decade later, the Dutch painter Rembrandt ran into debts and had to sell his house and his collections.
  TACMRS provides an interdisciplinary forum for discussions and debates on collecting as a cultural practice and literary theme from Antiquity to the Renaissance and seeks to create dialogue between and across disciplines and periods. We encourage submissions with cross- cultural approaches, and on this premise welcome papers that reach beyond the traditional chronological and disciplinary borders of classical, medieval and Renaissance studies. Thus, in addition to the historical categories and thematic questions raised above, topics such as collecting practices East and West; the representation of ancient libraries, collectible objects or cultural treasures in modern literature and film; the cabinet of curiosities in modern art; and other topics that engage critically with the conference theme will be considered.
  TACMRS welcomes papers on any other subjects that fall within the historical periods and disciplinary areas covered by the Association.
  This conference is under the auspices of the Taiwan Association of Classical, Medieval, and Renaissance Studies and the Department of Foreign Languages and Literature of Tunghai University in Taichung, Taiwan.
  Conference Location: Tunghai University; Taichung 40704, Taiwan
  Conference Language: All papers are required to be written and presented in English.
  Guidelines for Abstract Submission: The length of the abstract should be maximum 350 words. Abstracts should be typed in fonts of size 12 and spacing of 1.5 and saved in MS Word format. Do not include the name or other identifying information of the author(s) in the abstract; there will be a blind review of the submissions. Send the abstract by e-mail to flld@thu.edu.tw with a subject line stating “Submission for the 6th TACMRS Conference.” Include information regarding academic affiliation of presenter(s) in email. Send abstracts/proposals for papers to:
  Henk Vynckier, Chair
  Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
  Tunghai University; Taichung 407; Taiwan
  flld@thu.edu.tw
  Tel.: 04/2359-0121 Ext.: 31200
  Fax: 04/2359-4002
  Due date for abstract submission: March 15, 2012. Notification of abstract acceptance: May 1, 2012. Deadline for registration: Oct. 1, 2012
  Due date for full paper submission: Oct. 5, 2012
  Contact Information:
  Phone Number: 04-2359-0121 Ext. 31200: Ms. Sherry Jan (Assistant)
  Email: sj1109@thu.edu.tw (Assistant Sherry Jan) or
  hvynck@thu.edu.tw (Dr. Henk Vynckier, Chair)
• God and the Enlightenment: 4-6 October 2012
  The George Washington Forum on American Ideas, Politics, and Institutions, which has its home at Ohio University, invites paper proposals for a conference and subsequent edited volume on religion and the Enlightenment. The conference will be held at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio (4–6 October 2012) and is co-organized by William J. Bulman and Robert G. Ingram. John Milbank (Nottingham) will deliver the keynote lecture, while Justin Champion (London), Jonathan Clark (Kansas), Brad Gregory (Notre Dame), Maria-Cristina Pitassi (Geneva), Joan Pau Rubies (LSE), Jonathan Sheehan (UC–Berkeley) and Dale Van Kley (Ohio State) will deliver plenary lectures.
  This conference aims to promote academic discussion and to explore new research trends on the origins, character and consequences of the Enlightenment, especially regarding religion. The conference organizers welcome the work of advanced doctoral students and both young and established scholars in the fields of history, religion, philosophy and literature.
  Proposals — which should include a 500-word abstract, a brief curriculum vitae, and complete current contact information — should be sent by 9 March 2012, to the conference organizers: William J. Bulman, Department of History, Lehigh University (bulman@lehigh.edu)Robert G. Ingram, Department of History, Ohio University (washingtonforum@ohio.edu)
  Notifications of a paper’s acceptance will be sent out in early April.
  The conference is supported primarily by a grant from the Thomas W. Smith Foundation

_________________________________________________

Talks, tours, events

• Towner Contemporary Art Museum
  
  On Saturday, 10th March, Jem Southam, one of the UK's leading
  photographers, will give a rare insight into his work and career. Towner
  holds a significant number of works by Jem Southam in the collection, two
  of which are on show in New Eyes, our current collection exhibition.
  
  The Towner Collection will also be the focus of Dr. Julian Freeman's study
  morning on Saturday, 14th April. During the later twentieth century the
  Towner Art Gallery gained something of a cult status, as successive
  curators cannily exploited the re-emergence of what was known as 'Modern
  British' British art of the approximate period 1880-1960. Dr. Julian
  Freeman will examine the reappearance of some of the most formidable art
  ever produced in Britain, its public rejection, and the intriguing story of
  the development of Towner's remarkable art collection.
  
  For further information and to book online please go to
  http://www.townereastbourne.org.uk/events/talks-tours-events . You will
  also find details of our store and gallery tours which can be tailored to
  the needs of individual groups, if you would like to bring along your
  students to focus on a particular artist or area of interest.

_________________________________________________

Colloquium

• The Legacies of British Slave-ownership project at University College London cordially invite you to the next Neale Lecture and Colloquium in British History, entitled “Emancipation, Slave Ownership and the Remaking of the British Imperial World.”
  The colloquium will take place at UCL from March 29^th - 31^st 2012, and will be opened by a public lecture from Professor Robin Blackburn on “Slavery and Finance in Britain’s Empire of Free Trade.” This lecture will take place at 5:30pm in the Gustave Tuck Lecture Theatre, Main Building, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT.
  Over the next two days, the colloquium will debate current work, including that of the LBS project, on the centrality of slavery and slave ownership to the remaking of the British imperial world after abolition in 1833, and consider the implications of these legacies for history writing.
  Speakers and respondents include Catherine Hall, Nick Draper, Keith McClelland, Zoe Laidlaw, Richard Huzzey, Miles Taylor, Pat Hudson, Chris Evans, Julian Hoppit, Heather Cateau, Anita Rupprecht, Clare Anderson, Alison Light, Andrea Stuart, Cora Kaplan, Sir Hilary Beckles, Vijaya Teelock, Francoise Verges and Andrea Levy.
  A programme and registration form are available on our website at http://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/nealeconference/. We have a reduced rate for postgraduates – please see the registration form for details.

--
Regards,

The History Lab team.

CFP History Lab Annual Conference 2012

Dear all,

See below for the call for papers for History Lab Annual Conference. The Conference will open with a plenary panel on Agency and history. Professor David d’Avray FBA and Professor Catherine Hall of UCL, and Professor Christian List of the LSE will each give a short paper, followed by a round-table discussion.

_________________________________________________

AGENCY: History Lab Annual Conference 2012

Institute of Historical Research, London , 13-14 June 2012

Who makes history? What is the role of the individual, and how much influence can they have? While historians have long debated the meaning and implication of agency, events such as the Arab Spring, in which traditional structures are overturned by collective and individual action, gives the notion of agency fresh urgency.

The study of agency, traditionally understood as the ability of the individual to act independently of political, social and cultural structures, has been dominated by social scientists such as Simmel, Elias, Bourdieu, and more recently, Anthony Giddens. With this in mind, the aim of the History Lab Conference 2012 is to investigate the relationships between agents and structures through the analysis of historical example.

History Lab would like to bring together postgraduate students and early-career researchers to explore the significance of agency. Potential speakers are invited to submit proposals for papers, or panels of three speakers, on specific topics exploring agency or on wider methodological and philosophical issues.

Papers may cover any historical region or period, exploring agency in topics including, but not limited to, the following areas.

• Religious lives
• Popular politics, protest and resistance.
• Crown and estates.
• Court culture.
• Administration and bureaucracy.
• Industry and urbanisation.
• Rural lives.
• The family.
• Social mobility.
• Cultural production.
• Labour, business and industrial relations.
• Policing, surveillance and the law.

Some travel bursaries will be available for research students travelling from the United States. Please email historylab2012@gmail.com for further details.

To submit a proposal for the conference, please send your title along with a 250-word abstract, your institutional affiliation, and full contact details to:

historylab2012@gmail.com by the deadline of Monday, 27^th February, 2012.

--
Regards,

The History Lab team.

Bulletin

History Lab Bulletin 25 January 2012

Dear all,

See below for projects and events that may be of interest to History Lab members.

In this issue:

• Next in History Lab
• Calls for papers
• Internships

_________________________________________________

Next in History Lab:

• Meet the historian: Antony Beevor, Wednesday 25 January 2012, 18:00 – 20:00, Russell Room (Room G32) Senate House
  Antony Beevor is the author of The Battle for Spain, Crete - the Battle and the Resistance, Stalingrad, Berlin - the Downfall, and D-Day The Battle for Normandy. His books have been translated into thirty languages and have sold over four million copies. He is a visiting professor at Birkbeck College and the University of Kent and a former chairman of the Society of Authors.
  ‘Meet the Historian’ events are an opportunity to hear at first hand from noted historians how and why they became historians in the first place, their thoughts on research and the discipline generally, and about their latest work. There will be the chance to ask questions and enter into discussion, and to join the speaker for drinks after the talk.
• Seminar: Chloe Kroeter (King’s College Cambridge) - The Two Sphinxes: Fighting Poverty with Art on the Covers of The New Age, Thursday 2 February 2012, 17:30 – 19:30, Holden Room (Room 103), Senate House
  For more information, see: http://www.history.ac.uk/historylab
• Calls for papers: AGENCY: History Lab Annual Conference 2012
  Institute of Historical Research, London, 13-14 June 2012
  Who makes history? What is the role of the individual, and how much influence can they have? While historians have long debated the meaning and implication of agency, events such as the Arab Spring, in which traditional structures are overturned by collective and individual action, gives the notion of agency fresh urgency. The study of agency, traditionally understood as the ability of the individual to act independently of political, social and cultural structures, has been dominated by social scientists such as Simmel, Elias, Bourdieu, and more recently, Anthony Giddens. With this in mind, the aim of the History Lab Conference 2012 is to investigate the relationships between agents and structures through the analysis of historical example. History Lab would like to bring together postgraduate students and early- career researchers to explore the significance of agency. Potential speakers are invited to submit proposals for papers, or panels of three speakers, on specific topics exploring agency or on wider methodological and philosophical issues. Papers may cover any historical region or period, exploring agency in topics including, but not limited to, the following areas:
  Religious lives
  Popular politics, protest and resistance
  Crown and estates
  Court culture
  Administration and bureaucracy
  Industry and urbanisation
  Rural lives
  The family
  Social mobility
  Cultural production
  Labour, business and industrial relations
  Policing, surveillance and the law
  Some travel bursaries will be available for research students travelling from the United States. Please email historylab2012@gmail.com for further details. To submit a proposal for the conference, please send your title along with a 250-word abstract, your institutional affiliation, and full contact details to:
  historylab2012@gmail.com by the deadline of Monday, 27th February, 2012.

_________________________________________________

Calls for papers

• Don’t miss the 3rd-round submissions to the 4^th QQML2012 International Conference (22-25 May 2012 Limerick Ireland). The deadline for submissions is: 30 January 2012. For more information, see: http://www.isast.org/sessionsworkshops.html

_________________________________________________

Internship

• Jane Withers Design Consultants/Curators. Design consultant and curator looking for an enthusiastic and adaptable intern to help in the office. Main responsibilities will include, but are not restricted to, research and supporting in coordinating an upcoming design event/exhibition. This is an ideal opportunity for someone interested in learning about consulting and curating in the field of design.
  The ideal candidate will preferably have a background in art or design
  history, arts management or design and a strong interest in design and
  architecture. He or she will have previous experience conducting in depth research and a capacity to edit findings, an eye for detail, and be resourceful. Good knowledge of Powerpoint essential and working knowledge of Creative Suite appreciated, but not essential.
  Please send your current CV and covering letter stating why you are
  interested in this internship and how you fit the description to
  gaia@janewithers.com. Please state when you would be available to begin,
  for how long you would like to intern and how many days a week in your
  email. Please include any software you can use and useful graphic
  experience in preparing presentations. (Travel expenses and lunch will be
  covered). NB: This is not a hands on creative internship, suitable for
  designer interested in curating.
  
  Application deadline 27.1.12
• Tudor Portraiture (Sixteenth-Century British Art) Curatorial Internship Opportunity
  The National Portrait Gallery is seeking to appoint two Interns to provide research related assistance in its Curatorial department. The successful candidates will gain valuable experience in a national collection, and training using the Heinz Archive & Library will be provided. Additionally there will be the opportunity to attend a Gallery induction day to learn more about the range of the Gallery's work. The internship will be for a six-month period from mid-March 2012, one day per week. The internship is unpaid.
  1) Research project: Making Art in Tudor Britain
  The principal task will involve working with curators and conservators as part of the Making Art in Tudor Britain project, which is investigating Tudor and Jacobean painting techniques through technical analysis of the Gallery’s collection of sixteenth-century portraits. The internship would be ideally suited to candidates with knowledge or experience of technical art history or material studies, and involves working on the project database, collating both historical and technical information, and also supporting the research for forthcoming displays that relate to the project.
  2) Research project: forthcoming exhibition
  The principal task will be to support the Chief Curator and Associate Curator (16^th century) with research relating to a forthcoming sixteenth-century exhibition. The internship will involve using the archive and other resources to research portraits and works of art of the period.
  General assistance
  The interns may also on occasion assist with other projects, using the archive and library to research paintings.
  Hours
  1 day (8 hours) per week for six months by arrangement with the curator.
  Travel Expenses
  Travel costs of up to five pounds (£5) per week can be claimed
  Person Specification
  Qualifications and Experience
  Good general knowledge of British art and/or history during the sixteenth century and a reasonable understanding of portraiture as a genre
  The internship would ideally suit current MA students in Art History or History who have an interest in pursuing museum work
  Skills and Attributes
  Ideal candidates will need to have a flexible approach and be prepared to contribute to a number of different projects. Candidates will also need to be able to demonstrate a careful approach and attention to detail. Excellent written English is an essential requirement
  How to Apply:
  Please send your CV and a covering letter either e-mailing: curatorialoffice@npg.org.uk or by writing to: Seraphina Coffman, Curatorial Office, National Portrait Gallery, 2 St Martin’s Place, London WC2H 0HE.
  Closing date for returned applications is 9am Wednesday 15^th February 2012.
  The Gallery is committed to equality and is a member of the Employers’ Forum on Disability, Race for Opportunity and the Equality Exchange

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Regards,

The History Lab team.