Postdoctoral Associate – Research Project on Photomechanical Reproductions of Art in Periodicals

Postdoctoral Associate – Research Project on Photomechanical Reproductions of Art in Periodicals

Prague, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Art History

Application deadline: 30 September 2022

In accordance with law no. 283/1992 on the Czech Academy of Sciences, as amended by law no. 420/2005, and the Statutes of the Czech Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Art History, Czech Academy of Sciences, is pleased to announce a selection procedure for a new research postdoctoral position in the project The Matrix of Photomechanical Reproductions: Histories of Remote Access to Art.

The position begins on 1 January 2023. It is to be filled for two years full-time, with the possibility of renewal for up to three additional years.

The project investigates the history of remote access to art through photomechanical reproductions of artworks in periodicals in a transnational perspective. The first step is to build an extensive dataset of photomechanical art reproductions in Czech, French, German and Russian art journals from 1900 to 1950, which will be amenable to distant-viewing data explorations. Drawing on the methodologies of art history, photography studies and digital humanities, the project seeks to understand the conditions of production, circulation and consumption of photomechanical reproductions in art journals. The aim is to assess their impact on artistic taste, transnational artistic exchange, shaping the canon and popularization of art.

The postholder will become part of the project’s core team at the Institute of Art History of the Czech Academy of Sciences (https://www.udu.cas.cz/en/) and its Photography Research Centre (CVF). The Postdoctoral Associate will partake in the dataset preparation, machine-learning and consecutive data exploration, in collaboration with the project’s partners at the Computer Graphics Group at Charles University in Prague, and conduct research on photomechanical reproductions of art in periodicals within the project. The postholder will be expected to publish the results of their research in high impact journals, assist in collaborative aspects of the project (co-organizing conferences or seminars, co-editing and co-authoring publications) and partake in the preparation of a project proposal to an ERC grant.

The postholder will have access to the facilities and professional development options offered by the Czech Academy of Sciences, and benefit from the project’s funding in terms of equipment (including a personal laptop) and allowances for research trips and conferences abroad.

Profile:

- a PhD in Art History or related fields (Photography Studies, Digital Humanities, Periodical Studies)

- research interests that intersect with aspects of the project (photography studies, periodical studies, digital art history…)

- a qualification or a previous experience in digital humanities with an emphasis on images would be an asset

- good cooperation skills and team spirit

- an excellent command of English

- a language proficiency in German would be appreciated, in order to cover the German aspects of the dataset.

The position is a two-year fixed-term contract, with a possibility of renewal. The net monthly salary is up to 45 000 CZK. The candidate must have defended their PhD no more than 10 years prior to the application deadline.

Application materials should include a cover letter, curriculum vitae, list of publications, recent writing sample of an article in English, either published or unpublished, and contact information for two professional references in one PDF file.

For any enquiries about the position, you may contact Dr. Fedora Parkmann, parkmann@udu.cas.cz, with the subject line ‘Postdoctoral Associate Application’.

Applications including all of the above shall be sent to the secretariat of the Director of the Institute at the address Husova 4, 110 00 Praha 1, Czech Republic, or at the email address udu@udu.cas.cz, with the subject line ‘Postdoctoral Associate Application’.

The deadline for application is 30 September 2022. Interviews will be held in October and the results published at the end of October.