POSITION SUMMARY:
The Department of Architecture and Design is one of the oldest museum collections of architectural drawings and design objects in the United States, comprising more than 250,000 works dating from the 1870s to the present day. One area of collection strength is modern architecture and design from Chicago including drawings and fragments by architects Walter Bailey, Bertrand Goldberg, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and Louis Sullivan and works by designers Charles Harrison, Henry Glass, and students and faculty of László Moholy-Nagy’s Institute of Design. As the department continues to build a more inclusive collection of architecture and design at the Art Institute, one high priority is to increase our holdings of projects from the many African American architects and designers whose work has shaped the history, products, and building in Chicago and beyond.
The Department of Architecture and Design seeks a 2024-27 Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Foundation Fellow to advance new avenues of research and collection building related to the history of African American architects and designers in Chicago. This three-year fellowship would build on important precedents, including department’s recent work with contemporary Black architects and designers including Norman Teague, AD-WO, and Germane Barnes and the 2018-19 Chicago Cultural Center exhibition African American Designers in Chicago: Art, Commerce and the Politics of Race.
The fellow will work collaboratively with the curators to identify impactful designers and architects, research and recommend works for the collection, produce online articles on selected figures, and propose ways to include these important local histories in our permanent collection galleries, among other curatorial tasks. Architects and designers identified for this project include Walter Bailey, Beverly Lorraine Greene, Charles Harrison, Tom Miller, John Moutoussamy, Robert E. Paige, Robert Wesley, and LeRoy Winbush. The overarching goal of this initiative is to allow the department to greatly expand the narratives we are able to tell—through objects and research—about the history of African American architecture and design in Chicago.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
QUALIFICATIONS:
An advanced degree (Master’s-level or beyond) in architectural or art history or a closely related field with a strong research focus on the history of architecture, design, and/or the built environment. The ideal candidate would bring a high level of expertise with the history of modern architecture and design and Black studies to advance the department’s scholarship in these areas.
Candidates should submit a CV, a cover letter detailing the candidate’s interest in applying for the fellowship and the skill set(s) the candidate would bring to the position, and a document listing the names of at least three references. Upon invitation to interview, further supporting materials (such as writing samples) may be requested. Attachments should be collated into a single PDF document and uploaded as one file.
The fellowship will begin in September 2024. This is a three-year appointment. To ensure the fullest possible consideration, please submit your application by April 8, 2024. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the post is filled.