ArtSTOR Recently Adds Images from the American Folk Art Museum

Because Prof. Martin's is currently teaching a seminar entitled "Vernacular Arts: Outsider, Folk, Eccentric, and Other Arts of the Edge", here's a link to ArtSTOR's press release about the addition of images from the American Folk Art Museum:

http://www.artstor.org/news/n-html/an-110223-folk-art.shtml

To cut to the chase, here's the link to the image gallery:

http://library.artstor.org/library/collection/afam

We Need Your Feedback on the Material Culture Program! Feedback Session on March 3

On Thursday March 3, Prof. Kate Smith will chair a one-off meeting, which is designed to give students a space in which they can share comments and feedback on the Material Culture Program as it stands now.  

All material culture students are very welcome--so please attend!  The meeting will take place on Thursday March 3, at 4:00pm in Room L166, Elvehjem Building.

After the session, Prof. Smith will present your (anonymous)suggestions to the faculty members, as it is hoped that your comments will aid them as they set about rethinking and redesigning the Material Culture offering at UW-Madison. 

CFP: Conference on Critical Refugee Studies, UWM, November 3-4, 2011

Conference on Critical Refugee Studies
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
November 3-4, 2011
 

Displacement of populations affects the uprooted as well as communities that receive them. Recognized by international proxy after World War II, the identity category of refugee has a history as long as the incidence of warfare and other crises that result in displacement. This conference uses the 20th century invention of the category of refugee as a means to compare the experiences of displaced persons across time and space.
 

We invite papers that chronicle and reflect on the experiences and representations of refugee populations. In particular, we are interested in work that expands the idea of the refugee to create comparisons and parallels with the experiences of other groups. Papers that define the term refugee broadly and creatively are most welcome.
 

Among the questions we invite:
• How do refugee identities compare to those of other migrants?
• As local and global political contexts change, how do refugees conceptualize notions of citizenship and home?
• How are refugee identities in dialogue with concepts of place/displacement?
• What is the role of memory and the creation of refugee texts?
• How is the refugee experience mediated/mass mediated?
 

Abstracts by May 15, 2011 to: criticalrefugee-studies@uwm.edu
 

Confirmed Speakers:

• Michael Rios, Director, Sacramento Diasporas Project, University of California-Davis
• Ghita Schwarz, Legal Aid, New York; author, Displaced Persons
• Romola Sanyal, Lecturer in Global Urbanism, Newcastle University
• Shirley Tang, Asian American/American Studies University of Massachusetts, Boston
 

Possible Appearance:
• Dinaw Mengestu, Author, The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears & How to Read the Air
 

Sponsored By: Comparative Ethnic Studies * Hmong Diaspora Studies * Buildings-Landscapes-Cultures * Center for 21st Century Studies * College of Letters and Science* Latin American Caribbean & US-Latin@
Studies * Jewish Studies

2011-2012 Winterthur Curatorial Internship Announcement

Curatorial Internship Winterthur seeks an intern to work with curatorial staff on a variety of projects related to exhibitions, collections management, research, publication, teaching, visitor services and development.  The duties may include work in any or all of the collection media.  Specific duties will be assigned on a project basis and may include, but are not limited to, collections management, exhibitions, research, publication, teaching, visitor services and development.  A proportion of the work will include routine departmental duties that contribute to the effectiveness of the department as a whole including: answering enquiries; escorting visitors and researchers into the collections; assisting with accessions; developing programs for public and membership groups; and offering clerical support where needed.  For more information about the museum and collections, please visit www.winterthur.org. The successful candidate will have an M.A. in a subject related to decorative and fine arts in America 1640-1860 with at least one month experience in a museum decorative arts or related department.  He/she will have a knowledge of, and familiarity with, the Winterthur collection, or a similar collection in another museum.  The successful candidate should have strong organizational, communication and interpersonal skills including public speaking; proficiency in Microsoft Office, especially Word, Outlook, and Excel programs would be an advantage; ability to lift 20 pounds; ability to lift and reach objects overhead; ability to maneuver in small and tight spaces; must have valid drivers license; and after training, must be able to pass care and handling of objects test.  This is a full-time, twelve-month position.  Starting date, subject to funding, is July 5, 2011.  Full benefits.  Interested candidates should email cover letter and resume to jobs@winterthur.org.  Closing date is April 15, 2011.

Summer 2011 Paid Internship at the Historic Indian Agency House, Portage, WI

Historic Indian Agency House

Portage, Wisconsin

www.agencyhouse.org

(608) 742-6362

PAID EXHIBITS AND RESEARCH INTERNSHIP

PROJECT/INTERNSHIP TITLE: Wisconsin Pioneers Exhibit Internship

STIPEND: $2,000 for 400 work hours (or, approximately 10 fulltime work weeks)—with half ($1,000) paid at the inception of the internship, and the remaining half paid upon satisfactory completion of project.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: April 15, 2011

INTERNSHIP START: June 01, 2011 (flexible)

LOCATION: Portage, Wisconsin

ORGANIZATION DESCRIPTION:

The Historic Indian Agency House (HIAH) is owned and operated by The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Wisconsin, one of 42 historical properties owned outright by the Colonial Dames of America, with an additional 28 affiliated with this genealogical association.

The Historic Indian Agency House was built in 1832 by the United States government as a residence for John Kinzie, Indian Agent to the Ho-Chunk people, and still sits on its original foundation on a 226-acre expanse of land nearly untouched by modern encroachment. The site holds the story of the fur trade, the opening of the West, and the accompanying demise of the Native way of life. Additionally, the site is an ecological gem that preserves remnants of the Ice Age and other natural processes that shaped Wisconsin. The mission of the site is to “preserve, interpret, and promote this 19th-century historic site in order to educate the public about the history of the Wisconsin territory, including the Winnebago Indians during the Commission of the United States Indian Agent John Harris Kinzie.”

The site was opened to the public in 1932, and since then has maintained a regular May 15 to October 15 open season. During this season, guided tours of the Agency House are offered for a nominal fee, with the permanent introductory exhibit and annual rotating exhibit available free of charge in the Visitors’ Center. The site also organizes and executes numerous adult and children’s programming ventures each year. A full-time, salaried executive director oversees all aspects of general operations and management, with 4 to 6 part-time docents employed during the open season.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

A generous grant from the Great Circle Foundation of East Northport, New York allows HIAH to seek a qualified intern for the 2011 summer season to carry out the Wisconsin Pioneers Exhibit Internship.

The Wisconsin Pioneers Exhibit Internship will result in an educational display exploring the homestead/farming experience of Wisconsin pioneers and immigrants. As the Agency House and surrounding grounds were used as a farmstead for over 70 years (from 1857 to 1928), this subject is particularly pertinent to the site. This exhibit will incorporate an assemblage of antique farm implements and artifacts held by HIAH, and includes approximately 120 square feet of exhibit space.

The internship will provide the selected candidate with an entire spectrum of exhibit design experience. In association with this project, the intern will be responsible for content development, historical research and narrative composition, exhibit construction, and physical installation of the completed exhibit. The candidate will also manage a small-scale budget specifically intended for research materials and exhibit supplies.

The information gathered and systematized as a result of this project will assist HIAH in gaining intellectual control of its collection; and the historical and logical framework provided by such an exhibit will provide visitors with a more meaningful experience.

The project will be supervised by Director Destinee Udelhoven. Udelhoven holds a Masters in American History and Museum Studies, and has produced traveling, temporary, and permanent exhibits. The selected candidate will also work closely with a family descended from one of the artifact donors who has a vested interest in the project, as well as local historians and other history and museum experts as needed.

The position will require approximately 400 hours of work between June 01 and September 01, 2011. The selected candidate will preferably work a regular 40-hour work week for 10 consecutive weeks, but flexibility to accommodate specific needs is possible.

Although the above-described project will remain the priority for the duration of the internship, other organizational duties may be assigned to the selected candidate. These duties may include, but are not limited to: clerical work, collections care, and gift shop duties.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Graduate student (or advanced undergraduate, based on the recommendation of professors or other acceptable references) enrolled at an accredited college or university, preferably in History, Public History, Museum Studies, Anthropology, or a related field. Must be creative, have good communication skills, possess an attention to detail, and both be self-directed and able to work within a team. Experience in exhibit design and development preferred but not required. Background in Wisconsin history preferred but not required.

OTHER:

Assistance in locating temporary housing, if needed, can be provided.

If additional hours are needed to fulfill program-specific internship requirements (i.e. 3 credits given for 480-hour internship, etc.), arrangements can be made to expand and extend this internship (with other public history projects and experiences) on an unpaid basis to meet such requirements.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

Applications must be received by April 15, with a final decision announced by May 01, 2011.

Applicants should submit a resume that details their relevant work and educational experience, including three references (two professional/academic and one personal). Applicants should mail all materials, with a cover letter outlining your interest in this position, to:

Destinee K. Udelhoven, Executive Director

Historic Indian Agency House

PO Box 84

Portage, Wisconsin

Email applications will also be accepted at:

destineekae@hotmail.com

Email submissions should state “Exhibit Internship” in the subject line.

CFP: "Dirt"

We are seeking contribution from all disciplines to an American Studies essay collection on DIRT. Dirt is among the most material but also the most metaphorical and expressive of substances.  This collection hopes to bring together essays that explore how people imagine, define, and employ the various concepts and realities of dirt.   What does it mean to call something dirty?  How do we understand dirt and its supposed opposite, cleanliness?  How do we explain the points at which we draw the line between clean and dirty, what we embrace and what we refuse to touch?  Drawing on multiple disciplines we hope to uncover and foreground the (often unconscious) centrality of the metaphors and actualities of dirt to U.S. cultures, values, and lived experiences. Possible formulations of this keyword include (but are not limited to):  * Dirty words   * Dirty pictures and dirty minds   * Dirt and disorder   * Hygiene   * Trash   * Dirt and art   * Waste, human and otherwise   * Excess and excrescences   * Germophobia   * Fear of impurity   * Chthonic dirt   * Sanitation   * Urban construction and destruction   * Getting the dirt: gossip, revelation, exposure   * Filthy lucre   * Washing one's hands   * Animals and animality   * Dirty jokes   * Dirty politicians   * Corruption and scandal   * Ecology/sustainability   * Dirt collectors (hoarders, Collyers syndrome, cat ladies)   * Getting down in the dirt (reality shows, mud wrestling, spectacle)   * Landfills and parks design   * Disgust, repulsion, nausea   * "Dirty immigrants" and other epithets   * Sustainable dirt Please send abstracts and cvs to Patricia Yaeger at pyaeger@umich.edu and Hildegard Hoeller at hilhllr@aol.com by April 30th, 2011.   Essays should be 9000 words and will be due December 15, 2011.

CFP: "Detroit, Global City: The Motor City and the World"

The American Studies Program at Wayne State University invites papers on the theme, "Detroit, Global City: The Motor City in the World" for a conference scheduled for September 23 and 24, 2011.

Although it is a border city and the home of several multinational corporations and international unions, Detroit is rarely considered as a global city like Los Angeles, New York, or London. This conference will explore the city's present, past, and future place in the economies, politics, and imaginations of the nation and the world.  We hope to move beyond nostalgic remembrances of Detroit's past and familiar narratives of loss--of jobs, residents, architecture, etc.--to a fuller discussion of Detroit's place in the world and its links to other cities.

We invite papers on Detroit, as both concept and physical space, on topics including:
--The folkways, foodways, and musical traditions of the city's immigrant communities
--Rebellion and internationalism 
--The "rust belt" in the American imagination
--Detroit and the media
--Racial politics and the city
--Migration and labor
--Gender and sexuality
--The cultural politics of Fordism at home and abroad
--The circulation of Detroit literature and music
--Suburbanization
--The politics of the northern U.S. border.

Papers exploring links between Detroit and other cities are encouraged. NYU's Greg Grandin, author of  Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City, will deliver a keynote address.

Please submit an abstract of approximately 150 words by April 20, 2011 to John Pat Leary (jpleary@wayne.edu) and to Sarika Chandra (schandra@wayne.edu).

CFP: "Colour"--Special Issue of the Journal of Design Studies

Call for Papers: "Colour" -- Special Issue of the Journal of Design History Deadline for submissions: 1 December 2011 Colour is a major aspect of design practice that has a long, tumultuous history.  It has been the subject of countless publications and exhibitions about visual culture, symbolism, science, fashion, and aesthetic meaning.  By contrast, this special issue of the Journal of Design History focuses on the work of colour practitioners, ratherthan on the colours themselves. Today, colour standards and colour forecasts are so ubiquitous that they are taken for granted, their chaotic history forgotten.  But the technical and cultural challenges of colour perplexed the practical men of the industrial era and inspired design theorists from Chevreul to Owen Jones to Le Corbusier.  Over the course of the twentieth century, colour was standardized according to Taylorist principles and rational colour practice was added to the designer's toolkit.  Practitioners debated the compatibility of rational standards and the creative needs of the style and fashion industries. This special issue seeks papers on the historical aspects of colour and design practice that are based on original research in designers' archives and other historical records, artefact collections, and oral histories. Topics include but not limited to the following themes: --Histories of colour in retailing, advertising, graphic design, and branding --The relationships and tensions among colour science, colour technologies, and colour as a design practice --Critical biographies or case studies of key practitioners, corporations, industrial designers, fashion designers, consulting firms, or professional associations involved in colour theory, colour styling, colour forecasting, or colour management --The role of consumers in usurping corporate definitions of colour practice and offering new uses or interpretations --The practice of colour forecasting as it evolved in different locales, cultures, and historical moments, and its relationship to design futures --The transnational transfer and global circulation of colour theories and practices --Colour in the fashion and beauty industries --The impact of new technologies (e.g. colorimetry or digitalization) on colour in the design professions and in the fashion industries --Colour, patriotism and national identity --Colour in architecture, and at trade fairs and world's fairs --The communicative aspects of colour in local, regional, national, and global discourses. Please forward enquiries to jdh@genesys-consultants.com  Submissions should be in the form of full papers of up to 8,500 words that adhere to the guidelines of the Journal of Design History along with an abstract of 300-400 words and a brief biography of up to 250 words.  They should be submitted online via the Journal's website, www.jdh.oxfordjournals.org, by 1 December 2011.  Papers for special issues will be subject to the usual double-blind refereeing and selection procedures of the Journal of Design History.

MAASA Conference Is Coming Together

Over the past semester, the Material Culture Focus Group has been organizing the 2011 Mid-American American Studies (MAASA) annual meeting, to be held here in Madison April 7-10.  The group received $5,000 to put on a conference we're calling "The Life of the Object," which addresses a variety of aspects of production, consumption, and reuse.  We will also have an exhibit of five artists' work on display throughout the conference, and an interactive event on Friday afternoon.  Here is the list of panel topics:

PRODUCTION (Friday Morning, April 8)

1.  Producing America: Appropriation and Consumption in Twentieth-Century Design

2. Assemblage

3. Imagined Materialities

4. The Legacy of Work: Technology, Craft, and DIY

CONSUMPTION (Saturday Morning, April 9)

5. Consumer Needs: Past, Present, and Future

6. Reconsuming Art  

7. (De)constructing Class in Consumption and Design  

8. Material Negotiation of Social Control  

9. Materiality of Sound  

REUSE (Saturday Afternoon, April 9)

10.  Reconsuming and Remembering  

11.  Creating a Material Past  

12. Changing Space, Changing Memory

13. Making Meaning and the Life Cycle of Objects